The radio airwaves and website forums of Merseyside have been buzzing with angry reaction to our announcement that we are shifting printing of the Liverpool Daily Post and Echo to Oldham.
Much of the indignation stems from misunderstandings, so today we would like to set the record straight.
Our newspapers will continue to be researched, written, designed and created in the heart of Liverpool, to provide the best and most in depth news coverage of Merseyside. Hundreds of people will continue to be employed by us here in Liverpool to achieve that.
Our company has decided that we will in future print the newspapers in Oldham - which, as anyone who lives there would tell you, is as much a part of Manchester as Southport is of Liverpool.
That hard decision was taken to keep our business viable in the very difficult economic circumstances the world is facing at present.
Our current presses at our Old Hall Street base are reaching the end of their useful lives, and the cost of replacing them here would have been astronomical.
Our company owns a print works in Oldham, which we can expand for £7.5m to cover our Liverpool printing needs - a fraction of the cost of rebuilding from scratch in this city.
That has a direct impact on around 100 of our loyal, committed and hard-working colleagues here in Liverpool. Some will be able to take new jobs in Oldham if they choose, but others face redundancy.
That is a cause of enormous regret to all of us here, but there is simply no alternative if our newspapers are to continue to be printed.
To those who suggested that they would not read our newspapers again because of this decision, we can only ask what they think this will achieve?
Our commitment as champions for the Liverpool city region is not changed one iota by this sad but inevitable business decision. We hope you will continue to support us, too.
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