Former Rover workers want answers, says MP Julie Kirkbride (From Bromsgrove Advertiser)

Former Rover workers want answers, says MP Julie Kirkbride

11:31am Tuesday 7th July 2009

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AN emergency statement was made in the House of Commons on Monday when it became clear that the long-awaited report into the collapse of MG Rover would not be published as the document has been referred to the Serious Fraud Office.

The controversial report has taken four years to compile and cost the taxpayer £16 million.

In the Commons, Bromsgrove's Tory MP Julie Kirkbride told the minister Ian Lucas: “As someone who represents a great many former Rover workers can I tell the minister that they are simply outraged at the time that it has taken for the report to be completed and at the £16 million price tag. They now want answers. They want to know why they lost their jobs and why, on the demise of MG Rover in April 2005, none of the company’s assets still belonged to it.”

Miss Kirkbride also pressed the minister to put a time-scale on when the report could finally be put in the public domain thereby releasing the £16 million trust fund from which former Rover workers could benefit.

The minister did not offer any time-scale and rejected a call by Mid Worcestershire MP Peter Luff, the chairman of the Business Select Committee, for parts of the report which contained criticism of the Government to be released.

He said: “Fairly or unfairly, at a time of deep political cynicism among the public, the general feeling will be that this is an attempt to delay an embarrassing admission of guilt until after the general election.”

County councillor Peter McDonald whose area covers Cofton Hackett, where a large part of the giant car plant was situated, said: "It has been a long four years and the sooner this is sorted out by the Fraud Squad the sooner those who lost their jobs will know the reason why."

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