6 December 2010
Highlands and Islands Labour MSP Peter Peacock fears the unemployed face a grim future in Kintyre even if the troubled Skycon wind turbine factory at Machrihanish survives.
He was responding to a shocking study by the GMB Union which found that more people are chasing every job in Campbeltown than in any other town in Scotland, and that the Kintyre community has a claimants-to-jobs ratio more than three times the Scottish average.
A total of12.9 unemployed workers are chasing each unfilled job vacancy in south Kintyre and Campbeltown, Mr Peacock said: “This is terrible news for those individuals and for Kintyre as a whole.
“It is vital that the Skycon’s wind turbine factory is retained if the situation is not to become a whole lot worse.
“The LibDem inspired cuts in the UK Government’s public spending can only add to the difficulties as public sector workers lose their jobs. “To make matters worse, these cuts come on top of the SNP having already cut teacher and classroom assistant numbers.
“The people of Kintyre and Scotland deserve better.”
