1 The Machynlleth factory closed down on Monday Jobs go as clothing plant shuts

Cityfax tie makers based at Newtown will close at the end of March although its parent plant at Corby in Northamptonshire will stay open.

This is the second jobs blow for the mid Wales clothes industry this week after receivers were called in to take over the Kenneth A Fogg and Son Limited children's clothes factory at Machynlleth on Monday.

More than 30 workers were made redundant with immediate effect during their morning coffee break.

But perhaps one ray of hope comes from Laura Ashley subsidiary, Texplan Manufacturing Ltd, which has a curtain-making factory based at Carno, which is said to be looking for about 20 machinists to join its 140-strong staff.

We want to recruit skilled workers and we already have a free bus service to Carno from Machynlleth and Newtown Mark Harrison, Texplan

Texplan Managing Director Mark Harrison said the company was looking for a 'significant number' of skilled machinists.

"We want to recruit skilled workers and we already have a free bus service to Carno from Machynlleth and Newtown."

Anne Marie Baggott, Cityfax's managing director, said the Newtown plant would close at the end of March.

"We've found it very difficult to sustain a viable production facility with competition from the Far East," she said.

Skilled

Speaking about the closure of the Kenneth A Fogg site on Monday, a Welsh Development Agency spokesman said it had been identifying all possible options for securing new jobs.

"These closures highlight the stiff competition facing the textile sector from Asia and the Far East," he added.

"It looks as though there is little we can do to prevent the closure of Cityfax once the three month statutory consultation with staff ends.

"But as a result of discussions held with the management of Texplan the company highlighted the need for skilled machinists at its Carno factory," he said.

"The company will now be holding interviews with the workers made redundant at Machynlleth at the town's Job Centre Plus offices next week."