Defence Secretary John Healey MP visited Aycliffe to announce the government has acquired the semi-conductor plant in Aycliffe Business Park.
The factory, which was originally opened by Queen Elizabeth in 1991 as a Fujitsu plant, was at risk of closure after owners Coherent put the facility up for sale. 100 highly skilled jobs were at risk.
Mr Healey was welcomed to Aycliffe by new Member of Parliament Alan Strickland, who had been in talks about the future of the factory for some time. The Ministry of Defence stepped in to protect the production of semi-conductors, which are vital to the defence supply chain.
Alan Strickland MP said: “After months of work behind the scenes with Labour’s defence team I’m absolutely delighted that we have secured the future of this world-class plant. The government has stepped in to save the 100 jobs and will be investing to grow work and opportunities there in the coming years.”
Photo courtesy of the Northern Echo.