Kate Forbes vows to 'leave no stone unturned' to save Falkirk's Alexander Dennis jobs

Kate Forbes said the Scottish Government would "explore every avenue" to save the 400 jobs at risk of redundancy.

Last week the company announced consultation on plans to move its manufacturing away from Camelon and Larbert, instead only having one manufacturing plant in Scarborough.

The news came as a further blow to the area already reeling from the loss of 400 jobs at the Petroineos refinery in Grangemouth.

Speaking in Holyrood yesterday (Thursday), Ms Forbes said: "We are determined to help the business find an alternative to that route and to find different ways to meet market challenges through investment and improved performance.

"A key part of that is the ability of Alexander Dennis to secure future orders, and that is why we are working closely with the company to identify and secure a forward pipeline of demand for high quality buses from Scottish and UK customers."

She said securing a pipeline for bus orders in Scotland was "key" to securing the future of the sector in Scotland .

She added: "We will work in close collaboration with the company, with trade unions and the UK Government to find practical solutions.

"We are not going to play politics with the situation.

"We will continue to explore every avenue to avoid job losses."

Her statement was welcomed by Unite’s Scottish Secretary Derek Thomson who said the union had held “positive and constructive meetings” with the Ms Forbes, who is also the Economy Secretary, to explore all options which can keep the Alexander Dennis sites open in Falkirk and Larbert.

He added: “We welcome the Scottish Government actively working with the trade unions to find solutions to the threat of 400 highly skilled jobs being lost.

“It is our firm belief that there are pathways to retaining a manufacturing presence at the sites. This must include accelerating bus building opportunities across Scotland and the UK. We believe the Scottish Government also see a number of viable pathways for the sites.

“Unite is fully supportive of a time limited furlough scheme which would be used while contracts are secured.

"The deputy First Minister called for cross-party and UK wide collaboration because what matters most is saving as many jobs as possible. Unite fully supports this call and it is now incumbent upon us all to work collectively to make these pathways a reality because the clock is ticking.”