Glasgow SNP MSP Bob Doris has today (Tuesday) tabled a Parliamentary motion suggesting that this month’s Kilmarnock-Partick Thistle football friendly on 29 July at Rugby Park is a perfect opportunity for football fans to show their support for retention of jobs at the Diageo plants in Glasgow and Kilmarnock.

Mr Doris believe it is a perfect opportunity for supporters and the wider community to attend the game in a show of solidarity with the workers in both Glasgow and Kilmarnock who face the axe from Diageo.

Mr Doris, who convened a meeting last week with Unions, Scottish Enterprise and Glasgow City Council in the  Partick Thistle board room, has placed the motion before Parliament applauding the support both clubs have already given the threatened workers.

The MSP believes that a strong turn out for the game would give a boost to the campaign and send a strong signal to Diageo that the wider community believe that both the threatened sites at Port Dundas and Kilmarnock have a future.

Mr Doris said: "Both Partick Thistle and Kilmarnock football clubs have shown a great commitment and determination to help their communities retain the jobs threatened by Diageo at Johnnie Walkers in Kilmarnock and the Port Dundas distillery in Glasgow.

“This pre-season friendly between both clubs next week is an ideal opportunity for fans to turn out in significant numbers for the match and take a united stand against Diageo's plans.

"It would be good to see people that have not been to a game for a while, or even first timers, make the effort to attend. Having spoken to both GMB and UNITE unions I know that the workers and the Unions would very much appreciate this.

“I'll certainly be there and I hope others from Glasgow will make the trip through in a show of solidarity. Having spoken to the Jags Trust (Partick Thistle's supporters trust) they are certainly keen for as many from Glasgow to make the trip through to Kilmarnock.

"I am sure the Unions will be out in force at the game and fans will be given the opportunity to demonstrate their support on the night. Events such as the football game next week and the march in Kilmarnock at the weekend are significant. How Diageo are viewed by the public has a direct effect on their brand image, a brand image that would be dramatically improved if they invested in these communities".

Note:

Mr Doris’s motion is as follows:

Killie and Jags Rally Behind Diageo Workers
S3M-04611 Bob Doris (Glasgow) (SNP): That the Parliament applauds the support given to Diageo workers in Kilmarnock and Glasgow by both Kilmarnock and Partick Thistle football clubs; believes that this demonstrates the strong community links that the clubs have developed over the years; notes that Kilmarnock play Patrick Thistle in a pre-season friendly at Rugby Park on Wednesday 29 July 2009 and encourages people to attend this game to show their solidarity with the workers whose jobs are under threat; considers that the world-leading Johnnie Walker brand has been served loyally by workers at both sites for generations; believes that Diageo should recognise that the strength of the brand is owed largely to this hard work over many years, and calls on Diageo to support these communities by reconsidering its closure plans and by seriously considering alternative business proposals.