BAe axes 1775 jobs

[A.J.]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-24831779

The timing of this announcement has to be considered in relation to the forthcoming independence referendum, IMHO. Coming as it does just days after the GMB, the union that represents the majority of shipyard workers, declared its intention to campaign for a No vote.

Its often said that a lot of tories down in England covertly harbour pro-secessionist sympathies as a means of furthering the neoliberal agenda(despite being officially against the coming into being of an independent Scotland)

As such the cynic in me strongly suspects the jobs losses were deliberately revealed so soon after the GMB's position on independence was adopted in order to demoralise a sizeable chunk of the union's membership ahead of the aforementioned poll. Obviously in the hope GMB members will cease to be motivated to vote No next year.

[emilianozapata]

it's a shame to see more decent working men thrown on the unemployment scrapheap but an independent Scotland would lead to a more perpetual neoliberal agenda being enforced on the population of England and Wales which would be disastrous to the proletariat.

[RebelDog]

If we had a rational economy (one based on the needs of the population) these workers could transfer their skills to renewable energy projects. I also suspect, like the OP, that this has politics in the background.

[Yet_Another_Boring_Marxist]

it's a shame to see more decent working men thrown on the unemployment scrapheap but an independent Scotland would lead to a more perpetual neoliberal agenda being enforced on the population of England and Wales which would be disastrous to the proletariat.

Yea I tend to agree. No offense to the Scottish people, but I just don't see how they are systemically oppressed in the same way the Irish are over there. I mean feel free to point out how I am wrong, perhaps my privilege is showing and obviously I don't mind someone pointing it out. But I don't see anything which warrants political support for Scottish Independence and I don't think that within the context of the Scottish referendum that socialists have any business supporting nationalism of a non-oppressed people.

[A.J.]

Yea I tend to agree. No offense to the Scottish people, but I just don't see how they are systemically oppressed in the same way the Irish are over there. I mean feel free to point out how I am wrong, perhaps my privilege is showing and obviously I don't mind someone pointing it out. But I don't see anything which warrants political support for Scottish Independence and I don't think that within the context of the Scottish referendum that socialists have any business supporting nationalism of a non-oppressed people.

Indeed, Scottish nationalism is just another device used by the ruling class to spread false consciousness and divide-and-rule the British working class.

The SNP aren't nicknamed the "tartan tories" for no reason at all.

[Yazman]

Are BAE Systems scaling down production here, or is production in those areas being moved somewhere else?