Gordon Brown pledges assistance for Cadbury workers
Gordon Brown has today pledged his support for the Cadbury workforce after the company was acquired by Kraft Foods in an £11.9 billion recommended offer. However, the government's swift response to the acquisition has backfired somewhat with the revelation that Royal Bank of Scotland, 84% owned by the UK taxpayer and effectively under the control of the government, is one of a number of UK financial institutions that have lent money to Kraft Foods.
This now puts the UK government in a highly embarrassing situation of fighting for UK jobs at various Cadbury plants up and down the country while effectively bankrolling the company which acquired the UK giant. There are still concerns that Cadbury was possibly "sold on the cheap" although the company, with a history dating back to 1824, appeared happy to accept the revised £8.50 a share offer from the US giant.
Quite what the UK government can do to "assist UK Cadbury workers" remains to be seen but in many ways the government is missing the point as Cadbury has itself expanded by acquiring overseas operations over the years. Whether we are yet again seen more headline grabbing comments as we approach the election remains to be seen but it is unclear at this point in time what the UK government can do to safeguard UK jobs.
Share this..
Related stories
U.K. economy in danger of dropping out of the world's top 10
The UK economy is on the verge of dropping out of the world's top 10 due to a mixture of reduced natural resources and the emergence of economies such as Brazil and Russia. The UK economy was the fourth largest in 2005 and has since been overtaken by China, France and Italy and is currently hanging on to seventh place. However, it looks as though the UK could fall down as far as 11th place by 2015...
Read MoreUnion action likely after Corus plant closure
The GMB union has today confirmed it will ballot thousands of steelworkers in the UK after the announcement that Corus will close its Teeside plant. It is highly likely that steelworkers in the UK will be more than unhappy about the closure of the Teeside plant and the loss of potentially 1,600 jobs. While the government is currently in talks with the Corus management regarding a possible sale of...
Read MoreConfidence in the UK economy has been hit
Even though there were signs that the UK retail sector was starting to improve at the end of 2009, today's news of a potential leadership challenge against Gordon Brown may well wipe away any goodwill and confidence built up over recent weeks. A government which is effectively out of control and a leader who would appear to be unwanted by a significant minority of MPs does not bode well for the sh...
Read MorePaul Krugman hails UK economy as best in Europe
Nobel prize-winning economist Paul Krugman has today rode to the defence of Gordon Brown by suggesting that the UK economy is the best placed for recovery in Europe. Krugman believes that the various economic policies introduced by Gordon Brown over the last few months have been both intelligent and "pretty good" with a distinct possibility of a strong recovery in the UK economy in due course.
Has the UK economy really turned the corner?
There is much comment and speculation in the press this morning regarding the UK economy and the fact that yesterday's growth figures of 0.1% in the final quarter of 2009 were well below analysts expectations. As we have seen in the past, the Office for National Statistics has recently revised a number of economic data downwards at a later stage. If the same was to happen with the final quarter ec...
Read More