Scarborough's MP reacts to the closure of Pindar

Sir Robert Goodwill says the "advent of the internet" is partly to blame after around 250 people in his constituency are thought to have lost their jobs.

Sir Robert Goodwill MP
Author: Iona Stewart-RichardsonPublished 5th Apr 2022

The MP for Scarborough says “sadly it’s a sign of the changing times” that the town’s historic printing factory has been forced to close.

Last week more than 500 workers from the YM Group - which has three print firms based in Yorkshire - were made redundant.

FRP Advisory has been appointed as administrators for York-based York Mailing Ltd, YM Chantry Ltd, which is based in Wakefield, and Scarborough’s Pindar Ltd.

In a statement, the company blamed a "significant period of challenging trading that had been exacerbated by the impact of the pandemic" and rising costs for the move.

The company is promising to help former employees with their redundancy packages.

Greatest Hit’s Radio’s been told around 250 in Scarborough are affected by the closure of Pindar and have lost their work.

Local MP for Scarborough Sir Robert Goodwill gave his reaction to the sackings:

“Sadly I think it’s a sign of the changing times. I can remember when I was first elected and went to see Pindar and one of the main parts of the business was collating the data for the Yellow Pages book - which then was printed somewhere else, now how often do you use a Yellow Pages now that we have got the internet?..

"The advent of the internet means print media is not as well used and I expect that is one of the factors that has fed into this.”

He says “there are lots of jobs available in Scarborough, particularly for people who were working in the warehouse in Pindar” and is advising his constituents who are out of work to attend job fairs in the local area to seek advice.

Mike Greene, Scarborough Borough Council chief executive, said:

"The closure of Pindar, a company with a long and illustrious history of employment in Scarborough, is a huge blow for the town. It is devastating for all those who worked there and have sadly lost their jobs this week.

"In the coming days, weeks and months, our economic development team will work with partners to support those who have been made redundant by offering advice and connecting people to other organisations that will be able to help them through these difficult times."

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