Haulage losses are 'major blow'

The South Lanarkshire-based company went into administration on Wednesday

An MP has described job losses at a South Lanarkshire haulage company as a 'major body blow' to the area.

Ramage Distribution went into administration on Wednesday with the loss of 350 posts nationwide, 136 of which are at its Glespin headquarters.

The administrators, KPMG, pointed to difficult trading conditions including the rising cost of fuel.

David Mundell, MP for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale, said it was a huge setback for the area.

He said: "It's very disappointing news. Ramage is a very important employer in an area where there are a lot of difficulties with employment.

"Douglas Valley is a mining area struggling to regenerate. It's a major body blow because the company employ lots of local people."

Mr Mundell said he would contact KPMG to see if some jobs could be saved.

He said: "I plan to talk to the administrators to see if something can be salvaged from the situation. I hope that the business can be taken on in some way, so that the Douglas-based operation can continue."

At the moment, with the fuel prices continually rising it's difficult for hauliers to keep up and pass on those increases to the customers. Phil Flanders, Road Haulage Association

Ramage Distribution also has premises in Aberdeen, Halbeath in Fife and in England.

The company has an annual turnover of £30m and employs approximately 390 people.

It won the Innovative Haulier of the Year award in 2007, and in January it was recognised for its achievements at a ceremony attended by HRH Princess Anne.

'Rising costs'

Phil Flanders, from the Road Haulage Association (RHA), told BBC Radio Scotland that the whole industry was under pressure.

He added: "Hauliers have got to charge the going rate, they've got to get the rates up because if they don't there'll be more going into liquidation.

"At the moment, with the fuel prices continually rising it's difficult for hauliers to keep up and pass on those increases to the customers."

But William Mills, a night driver at Ramage Distribution, said that rising fuel duties were a 'smokescreen' for the company's financial difficulties.

Mr Mills, from Cumnock, said he won't be able to pay his mortgage this month because his wages were not being paid.

He said: "The RHA are saying its the spiralling cost of fuel, but they've just jumped on the bandwagon. The company made £30m profit last year, where's that money gone?"

A spokesman from the Treasury said Chancellor Alistair Darling had decided to delay the increase in fuel duties by six months in his last budget, in recognition of the rise in fuel prices and the pressures on businesses and motorists.