Falling demand in the UK at the root of Wrightbus decline

It was only seven years ago that the Ballymena firm was on the crest of a wave, having launched a new red double decker bus for London and its then mayor Boris Johnson.

Even two years ago, in 2017, there was seemingly no sign of the problems to come as the firm announced that it was moving to a new manufacturing site in Ballymena, declaring it was here for the long term.

The company’s fall can be traced to the lack of demand for new buses in the UK, the firm’s key market. Registrations for new buses and coaches were down 30% in the UK in the second quarter of 2019 on the same period last year and Wrightbus’ attempts to break into the international market have not compensated for the UK decline.

Unions yesterday led calls for intervention from the prime minister, perhaps partly pining their hopes on Mr Johnson’s previous links to the company, but there seems to be little hope for the vast majority of the hard-working and dedicated workforce at the Ballymena plant.

The administrators say that 1,200 redundancies have already been made, and that a future workforce there might only consist of 50 workers. That’s a truly devastating blow for so many families and it is eerily reminiscent of the previous closures in the Ballymena area of JT Gallacher and Michelin Tyres.

Of course this is also a devastating personal blow for the Ballymena businessman Sir William Wright, the man who oversaw the company’s big breakthrough in the 1980s when it began building buses destined for roads across the UK.

It was heartwarming that workers, despite their own troubles, found time to express sympathy for Sir William.

Perhaps something could yet be salvaged from this sad demise, but optimism is fading fast.