Newspaper bosses in Glasgow are facing a full-scale political controversy over the plan to axe up to 40 jobs at the city’s three Newsquest titles.

As reported yesterday, more than 200 journalists at The Herald, the Evening Times and the Sunday Herald have been issued with redundancy notices and invited to reapply for their jobs.

Managers plan to merge the newsrooms of the three titles with the loss of 30-40 jobs overall.

But the move has already sparked anger at the highest levels of the Scottish political establishment, with First Minister Alex Salmond demanding an explanation.

A spokesman for Mr Salmond said that, taken together with 20 job losses at the BBC in Scotland also announced yesterday, it was a worrying development.

He said the First Minister was calling on management at The Herald to provide “a detailed explanation of the full implications of this announcement.”

Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray added: “The Herald and Times group have a long and distinguished history and I hope the management restructuring will ensure that it continues to thrive.

“These are important newspapers that have played a special role at the heart of Scottish civic life. What is of concern is the potential scale of job losses and anxiety which staff now face as they have to reapply for their jobs.”

Pete Wishart, the ruling Scottish National Party’s culture spokesman, said: “Any decision that threatens news coverage and quality is clearly troubling, and these cut backs are a backward step by the group’s owners.

“When Newsquest acquired these newspapers they made a commitment to develop, and invest in them, regrettably those words do not seem to have been backed up by investment. Alongside the announcement of job losses at BBC Scotland, this is a sad day for Scottish journalism.”

General secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress Grahame Smith added: “It will undoubtedly cause severe problems within the group and cause major worry for the employees and their families.

“This further diminution of the already overstretched capacity of Scottish journalism is of extreme concern in our democracy.”

The extent of the row illustrates the relatively tight-knit nature of the Scottish media and the influence of The Herald and its Edinburgh-based rival The Scotsman on the country’s political culture.

Politicians north of the border regard the survival of the two titles as vital to the future of their democracy.

Herald and Times Group managing director Tim Blott himself acknowledged this point in his statement announcing the changes yesterday.

“We are committed to producing vibrant and relevant newspapers and web sites and see a bright future for The Herald, Sunday Herald and Evening Times and their digital versions. A strong indigenous press is vital for diversity of opinion and democracy in Scotland,” he said.

Comments

GANNETT WATCHER (04/12/2008 17:51:35)
This is all part of a secret plan by parent company Gannett to reduce costs still further, by £25m across Newqsquest. The Yanks don’t give a stuff what Alex Salmond thinks. They don’t give a stuff what the readers think.
Please htfp and other media watchers, wake up to what is happening. These cuts are going on under the radar at all Newsquest centres all over the country and there are more to come.
Our industry is being strangled. Who is going to save it?

Ivy Likes (04/12/2008 21:25:03)
20 redundancies announced at Newsquest Dorset.
New Dorset editor-in-chief Neal Butterworth’s first visit to meet his Weymouth staff(after six weeks in the job) was to announce that 20 redundancies were required between the Weymouth and Bournemouth centres.
Come on HTFP get on the ball!