Andy Burnham speaks about major Scarborough business in House of Commons

Andy Burnham has said that businesses, including Scarborough’s major bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis, should be favoured over companies based outside the UK.

Alexander Dennis employs hundreds of staff in Scarborough and is the world’s largest manufacturer of double-decker buses and is Britain’s biggest bus builder.

Speaking in a debate in the House of Commons earlier this week, the prime minister said: “Too many buses are being bought from companies outside our shores, when we have Wrightbus in Northern Ireland and Alexander Dennis Ltd in Scotland and Scarborough. We should be doing more to back British business, and MPs can expect that fully from me, as well as commitments to the shipbuilding industry.”

Scarborough and Whitby’s MP, Alison Hume, has been a vocal champion of the town as “a centre of excellence for bus manufacturing”.

Alexander Dennis recently warned that “the UK bus manufacturing sector is under intense pressure – costs are rising and half of all new buses now come from overseas”.

Speaking in Parliament last year, Ms Hume called on the chancellor to back British companies.

She said: “As bus services are brought back into the control of mayors and local authorities, will the Government use public procurement to back British companies such as Alexander Dennis to boost economic growth?”

Speaking at the time, the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves MP, said that the Government was due to publish a new “national procurement policy statement, which will set out our priorities for public procurement in support of our mission to grow the economy”.

She said: Ms Hume is a good advocate for businesses, including Alexander Dennis in Scarborough.

“We recognise the importance of buses in growing our economy by getting people to work, but also the opportunities to use public procurement to buy more buses made in this country, supporting good jobs here in Britain.”

This summer, around 400 workers walked out twice at the bus manufacturer’s Scarborough factory in a dispute over wages.

Commenting on the strike action earlier this year, Ms Hume noted: “​Alexander Dennis is a major employer in Scarborough, supporting hundreds of local livelihoods and playing a vital role in our economy.

“While the company faces intense competition from overseas manufacturers, the workforce, without doubt, remains its greatest asset.”