Published: Thursday, 2nd July, 2009 4:39pm

Browne holds talks with Diageo chiefs

Comments (0) | Print | Email

There are fresh hopes that a brighter future may be in store for the Diageo plant in Kilmarnock.

Des Browne, Labour MP for Kilmarnock held talks with Paul Walsh, Chief Executive of Diageo, in London today.

Speaking after the meeting, Des Browne, Labour MP for Kilmarnock and Loudoun, said: 'This afternoon I met with the Chief Executive of Diageo, Paul Walsh and other senior executives to discuss the future of their plant in Kilmarnock. I agreed with Mr Walsh that the Kilmarnock plant would have an opportunity to put the comprehensive case for retaining production there.

"The company are about to embark on a 90-day consultation with their workforce. That is a separate legal process but I am confident that the workforce, the local council, and with help from the Scottish Government, we can get our act together in the same timescale. In any event, we must do so because the people that work at Johnnie Walker need some certainty for the future as soon as possible.

"I am certain that the case for keep the plant open can be made as convincingly as it was ten years ago. But, if the proposal becomes a reality, I have been promised by Diageo that they will make a meaningful contribution to the future of Kilmarnock. They know the debt that they owe the people of Kilmarnock and their Chief Executive promised me that they would honour that debt.

"Tomorrow I will be visiting the plant, along with John Swinney MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth, and on Monday morning I will be meeting the workers' representatives at Johnnie Walkers."