Hi all,
Here is some depressing news I found in the Financial section of the Sunday Express Sept 10-
The headline runs-
"Last Tyne shipyard could be bulldozed"
"Swan Hunter, the last shipbuilding yard on Tyneside, could be bulldozed to make way for housing and leisure developments...
The Swan Hunter yard was effectively mothballed last month after it lost the opportunity to complete a landing ship contract for the Ministry of Defence that had run hundreds of millions of pounds over budget.
With little other shipbuilding work on the horizon, North Tyneside and Newcastle City Councils have been locked in talks with Swan Hunter's owner Jaap Kroese and regional development agency One NorthEast to determine the long-term future of the site.
A spokesman for North Tyneside Council said a full study of the options would not be ready until early next year...
However, sources say the council is considering proposals to create a mixed-use development including affordable homes, shops and industrial units.
Part of the site, which lies next to a Roman fort marking the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall, could be redeveloped as a tourist attraction with hotels and a visitors' centre, sources say.
But Tom Brennan, northern regional secretary of the GMB union, claims unions have been denied access to the talks and says he is "diametrically opposed" to such plans.
"It would be an absolute travesty if that site were used for anything other than shipbuilding and heavy industrial purposes...It would herald the loss of a great facility and a fabulous skill base that still exists on Tyneside".
Brennan said there was a healthy flow of possible future shipbuilding work from the Ministry of Defence, which wants to build two new aircraft carriers in a few years' time.
Kroese, who bought the yard when it was in receivership in 1995, told the Express he was "still looking for work for the yard but it's not easy".
He declined to comment on the site's future but could earn millions from a redevelopment scheme. The value of the site's land has soared over the past decade, although it remains heavily contaminated...
In its heyday Swan Hunter employed as many as 15,000 people but by 2004 this had dwindled to 1,500. Last month just 160 workers were left on site".
Sad news indeed in the year that marks the centenary of the launch of the Mauretania, and of course, Swan Hunters is significant not just to Mauretania fans, being the yard that also built the Carpathia.
Here is some depressing news I found in the Financial section of the Sunday Express Sept 10-
The headline runs-
"Last Tyne shipyard could be bulldozed"
"Swan Hunter, the last shipbuilding yard on Tyneside, could be bulldozed to make way for housing and leisure developments...
The Swan Hunter yard was effectively mothballed last month after it lost the opportunity to complete a landing ship contract for the Ministry of Defence that had run hundreds of millions of pounds over budget.
With little other shipbuilding work on the horizon, North Tyneside and Newcastle City Councils have been locked in talks with Swan Hunter's owner Jaap Kroese and regional development agency One NorthEast to determine the long-term future of the site.
A spokesman for North Tyneside Council said a full study of the options would not be ready until early next year...
However, sources say the council is considering proposals to create a mixed-use development including affordable homes, shops and industrial units.
Part of the site, which lies next to a Roman fort marking the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall, could be redeveloped as a tourist attraction with hotels and a visitors' centre, sources say.
But Tom Brennan, northern regional secretary of the GMB union, claims unions have been denied access to the talks and says he is "diametrically opposed" to such plans.
"It would be an absolute travesty if that site were used for anything other than shipbuilding and heavy industrial purposes...It would herald the loss of a great facility and a fabulous skill base that still exists on Tyneside".
Brennan said there was a healthy flow of possible future shipbuilding work from the Ministry of Defence, which wants to build two new aircraft carriers in a few years' time.
Kroese, who bought the yard when it was in receivership in 1995, told the Express he was "still looking for work for the yard but it's not easy".
He declined to comment on the site's future but could earn millions from a redevelopment scheme. The value of the site's land has soared over the past decade, although it remains heavily contaminated...
In its heyday Swan Hunter employed as many as 15,000 people but by 2004 this had dwindled to 1,500. Last month just 160 workers were left on site".
Sad news indeed in the year that marks the centenary of the launch of the Mauretania, and of course, Swan Hunters is significant not just to Mauretania fans, being the yard that also built the Carpathia.
