History has a curious habit of repeating itself and instead of learning lessons we keep on repeating past mistakes.
Finally today the UK has formally announced that it will be ending it’s military presence in Iraq after 6 years which is good news although not for some. Today BAE systems announced that it’s sites at Telford, Leeds and Guildford will all close by the end of the year, with further job cuts in Newcastle and Barrow.
BAE’s job losses come after a “downturn in work” related to the military missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. The UK government in December postponed a programme to build as many as 2,000 armoured utility vehicles.
“Our forecast UK order intake has reduced and we have to match the size of our business appropriately to the projected nature and volume of workload,” the company said.
The unit, the Global Combat Systems Vehicles and Weapons business, employs about 1,820 people in the UK.
BAE said about 100 roles from the three sites that are closing will be transferred to its sites in Leicester and Newcastle.
The Leeds office works on design, while the sites in Guilford and Telford provided support services. The Telford factory worked on maintenance for the Bulldog and Warrior combat vehicles used in Iraq, for example.
Another blow for the people of Shropshire…
Pictures of my recent visit to the cold war museum in Cosford.
[...] couple more photos from my recent visit to the Cold War Museum at [...]