The people of Derby will not be fooled by the Government’s latest Bombardier contract saga.
That’s the view of the city’s MEP Derek Clark, who has supported the workers at Bombardier from day one.
He said the announcement workers at the firm have been given fresh hope of their jobs being saved after it was revealed the firm is working with the Government on a potential £120 million contract, was "cynical".
Mr Clark said: "How dare the Government suggest a £120m Cross Country Voyager contract to Bombardier worth 10 times less than the £1.4b Thameslink contract they should have got?
"Well, Derby people can work out the difference even if the Government can't.
"Is the Government so out of touch it thinks companies and work forces can exist on air while they wait for a possible contract sometime in the future?
"The workers at Bombardier are being thrown scraps from the table by a Government which fails to stand up for British workers in the same way that the French, German and Spanish Governments do.
"By the time this paltry new contract comes along there may well be no Bombardier left. Certainly those skilled workers who can find alternative work will have gone.
"Is the Government so cynical that it realises this will happen so that the problem will just have gone away - taking with it yet more of our industrial heritage."
The latest contract involves plans to overhaul the diesel Cross Country Voyager trains to use a hybrid electrical power system instead. The trains were originally built by Bombardier, meaning it would be the prime candidate to carry out the work.
