Media group Reach planning to close two print sites

Media group Reach plc has announced it plans to close two print sites, putting 150 jobs at risk of redundancy.

Reach, owner of the Mirror and the Daily Express as well as regional news brands across the UK, announced a review of its print capacity in September.

Today it said it had started a consultation process over proposals to close print sites in Luton and Birmingham.

Reach said it would balance the printing of its national and regional print titles, as well as work for third-party customers, across its remaining print network that includes plants in Watford and Oldham.

Reach is the biggest national and regional news publisher in the UK. It owns brands from the Mirror to Birmingham Live and from the Manchester Evening News to BusinessLive.

A Reach spokesperson said: “Having conducted a review over recent weeks and taking numerous factors into account, we are proposing to consolidate our print operations into fewer sites.

“Regrettably, this would involve a reduction in our workforce so we have begun a consultation process that will be both full and considered.

“We would like to thank our print teams for their cooperation and understanding as we work through this process.”