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A FIRM in north-east England is to sack 170 workers after losing a government contract to print British passports.
The government has awarded the contract to a French-Dutch firm, which has outsourced the contract to a Polish company.
The jobs will go at De La Rue’s printing plant in Gateshead, which is also transferring work printing foreign currency to one of its overseas operations.
Unite national officer Louisa Bull said: “The government’s short-sighted and blinkered decision to award the printing of post-Brexit UK passports, worth £490 million, to French-Dutch firm Gemalto seriously undermined the financial viability of the Gateshead operation.
“Most European countries regard the printing of passports as a national security matter which should be done in the home country.
“However, we have a government which prioritises a rigid adherence to a right-wing outsourcing agenda before maintaining skilled printing jobs in the north-east and guaranteeing national security.”
