70 jobs under threat in North Wales

Dozens of jobs could be lost in North Wales at a company which provides IT support to Scottish Power.

Accenture have a base in Deeside and unions say 190 jobs could go at sites in Wales and Scotland - it's thought 70 of them could be at the Queensferry site.

Prospect Union negotiator Malcolm Currie said:

"Members are angry and disappointed at the decision to outsource this work to India, which came as a surprise to Prospect, given earlier discussions we had held with ScottishPower.

"This is not the consequence of UK skills shortages, but an attempt to save money by getting the work done more cheaply overseas.

"It makes no sense to lose vital skills and a loyal workforce in areas that have already been hard hit by the recession, yet these measures will take around £10m a year out of the UK economy."

In a statement, Accenture said:

"Accenture is currently engaged in an employee consultation process with trade union and employee representatives to discuss proposed reductions to staff requirements on its outsourced engagement with Scottish Power.

"We have communicated with these employees and the trade unions about planned changes to staffing requirements based on changing business needs since they were transferred to Accenture in April.

"It is too soon to discuss the final outcome of that consultation process."