About 100 jobs are due to go at the Tyne Brewery site

Scottish & Newcastle (S&N) plans to close its Tyne Brewery in Newcastle, with the loss of about 100 posts.

Brewing of its famous Newcastle Brown Ale will be moved two miles away to a site at Dunston, Gateshead.

But union leaders have told the company that any enforced job losses will be opposed.

S&N says the 120-year-old Tyne Brewery is no longer commercially viable.

It is buying a facility from the Federation Brewery for �7m.

Brewing operations

Officials from the Transport and general Workers Union met management from the company on Sunday.

Managers were warned that any compulsory job losses would be fought.

A union spokesman said: "Our priority is to ensure that anyone who wants to stay with the company has the opportunity to do so."

The combined brewing business at Dunston will employ about 170 people - the Tyne brewery currently employs 150 and Federation 130.

S&N said it wants to carry out the job losses through a voluntary redundancy scheme.

The company has already said it intends to take �45m of costs out of the UK brewing operations over the next three years.

S&N said a move to the Dunston site, which was built in 1979, would provide the opportunity to brew both lager and ale, as well as offer extensive packaging facilities and room for development.