News Archive - Coryton Oil Refinery - response

Thurrock Council leader, John Kent has expressed disappointment that the government has not done more to save the Oil Refinery, following the announcement that a consortium have made an offer to buy the Coryton Oil Refinery site.

Speaking from the LGA conference today where he was able to quiz the secretary of state for energy, about the matter, he said: " I am so disappointed that more hasn't been done by government to save the refinery and nearly 1000 jobs. Not only that but the impact on the national economy is estimated to be of the order of £1billion."

He added: "As a task force we will redouble our efforts to support the Coryton workforce in what are unimaginable circumstances for them. That is our top priority and with the knowledge that more redundancies will be announced by the administrator, we will work with partners such as jobcentre plus to do all we can to support those employees.

"At the appropriate time and as more details emerge, we will of course, work with the new consortium of buyers to look ahead and support them in identifying their workforce needs."