LONDON (Kyodo) Unions and parliamentarians are protesting a decision by the British government to award a huge and lucrative train contract to a consortium led by a Japanese company.
They are angry that 30 percent of the contract to build a new fleet of express trains will be spent at Hitachi Ltd.'s plant in Kasado, Yamaguchi Prefecture, when there is a manufacturer that could carry out all the work in Britain, thereby securing existing jobs both at that company and its suppliers.
The criticism represents growing concern among British workers and unions that foreign companies are taking work from homegrown firms battling to stay afloat during the recession.