A MASS rally to highlight the plight of Teesside’s manufacturing sector is to take place next month, The Northern Echo can reveal.

Plans are being made for an event to be held in Middlesbrough on Saturday, February 13, to show the strength of feeling over how badly-hit the area’s industry has been recently.

A series of body blows have hit Teesside’s manufacturing sector in recent months, including the potential mothballing of the Teesside Cast Products (TCP) site in Redcar on January 29 – a move which would see the loss of 1,700 jobs – and the crisis hitting six key chemical sites, with the closure of two, two more set to close this month, and doubts continuing over the future of a further two.

Last night, The Northern Echo learnt the rally, which will include key guest speakers, is in response to what is happening in the area, and is an opportunity for communities to demonstrate the human impact of the closures and potential closures. It will be the second mass rally to be held in the area in a few months, following the event in Redcar in July over TCP.

The announcement came as preparations got under way for the first meeting of a newly-established taskforce to help save TCP, which will be held on Friday.

Bob Bolam, regional organiser for Unite, said: “This is a wake-up call from Teesside.

So many sectors have been affected and so many jobs have been lost. This is an area with so much skill, and such highquality industries – we need to know this is a new year with new hope.”

Jimmy Skivington, regional organiser for the GMB union – which, with the Unite union, is helping organise the rally – said plans are still underway, but that it should be a significant occasion, adding: “We intend to hold a manufacturing rally, which will hopefully be an opportunity for people to demonstrate feelings over what is happening.

“It’s not just about Corus, it’s about the state of the manufacturing sector in general on Teesside, including what’s going on in the chemical industry.

“We will be inviting key guest speakers, people and communities. We want everyone to get involved.”

Mr Skivington will also be attending the taskforce meeting on Friday, set up to ensure all alternatives to mothballing TCP are fully looked into. Union leaders will discuss the issue with Corus bosses at Steel House in Redcar.

He said: “We remain hopeful over the future of TCP, especially since we had some positive feedback from our three MPs –Vera Baird, Dari Taylor and Ashok Kumar – after a meeting with the Prime Minister recently.

“We have got some pertinent questions to put to the company about the TCP facility, and we hope for a positive outcome to this whole situation.”