A GLIMMER of hope could be on the horizon for a stricken North-East shipyard.

The Cammell Laird ship repair yard on the banks of the River Tees was mothballed earlier this year when the company went into receivership with the loss of 110 jobs.

In the summer, it was bought by Southampton-based A&P Holdings, which said it had an option to take a lease on the yard if work came up in the future.

Now Vera Baird, MP for Redcar, has asked the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to back an urgent investigation into the take-over of the whole business.

She said she had been assured that if the South Bank yard was sold to Teesside businessman Eric Welsh, it could be back in operation in a matter of weeks.

She has joined forces with Frank Field, MP for Birkenhead, to ask the Government to put pressure on A&P to pass the facilities on to companies which are prepared to bring work back to the Tees and the Mersey.

She said: "It appears that all A&P want to do is stifle any competition by keeping these yards closed.

"I have spoken to Eric Welsh on many occasions and I am confident that he has an effective strategic plan which would soon have the Teesside yard back in operation, and this would provide much-needed employment opportunities to the South Bank area of Teesside.

"This affair has dragged on too long while the South Bank yard has stood idle. It is time for action and I look to the OFT to act to bring this affair to a conclusion as soon as possible."

Ms Baird said she hoped to hold negotiations with A&P and Mr Welsh in the next couple of weeks to see if a deal could be struck