MP Rosie Cooper has expressed her great concern about the news that GE Oil & Gas in Skelmersdale are currently consulting on redundancies of between 78 and 90 jobs at the plant.

Pictured opening the plant in August 2015, MP Rosie was very disappointed to not have been informed of the planned redundancy consultation by GE which has hindered the level of support she has been able to give to employees.

She was notified of the current consultation period by a member of staff who is a constituent and immediately spoke to the Plant Manager at the Skelmersdale site Martin Hoffman in an attempt to get the full details of the proposals.

Cooper has also tried to contact the External Affairs department based in Aberdeen who have not supplied a phone number for her to make contact with them.

Rosie has now offered to meet with members of the Consultation Representative Committee, in the absence of a recognised trade union, to discuss the proposals and support the workers in any way she can.

Yesterday she told QLocal: "This is a devastating blow to each and every worker affected by this consultation and their families.

“When the site launched just two years ago we all had high hopes of a long and stable association between GE and West Lancashire providing local employment opportunities.

“I am still seeking the details of the consultation from GE in order to assess if there is anything that can be done to ease or stop the redundancy proposals and support GE to continue operating at its current level of employment.

“We need Skelmersdale and West Lancashire to be a place where businesses want to locate and invest, providing jobs for local people. It would be a great shame if we are to lose such a high number of jobs without a fight.

“I’ve experienced redundancy in my life and know how difficult this period can be. I am available to any staff should they wish to speak to me.”