SHADOW Home Secretary Diane Abbott has lent her support for the union-led campaign to save the Honda car plant from closure.

The MP signed Unite’s Save Swindon Honda board after a meeting at their Stratton offices which focused on the government’s plan to prevent the plant closing and the upcoming march through Swindon’s town centre.

She said: “I think it was a productive meeting. I know that Jeremy Corbyn is very concerned about this issue and I was really interested to hear first-hand from actual full-time workers about the situation, the uncertainty, the fear for the future and what the consequences will be if Honda goes through with this proposal.

“I hope the march will have an affect, people do have to mobilise, there’s no question. You have to have hope and the next step is to see what this plan is that the government is going to come up with.”

Swindon Labour leader Jim Grant took part in the meeting. He said: “Diane is the most high-profile politician to have come to Swindon since the Honda news broke and I think that reflects how seriously the Labour Party nationally are taking this proposed closure. I’d like to thank her for coming to Swindon. We’re committed to the task group that Business Secretary Greg Clark has set out. What we’ve learned today is that we’re not sure if the workforce is being kept up to date with where we’re going with the plan to save the plant, that’s where we need to go next to ask what’s happening.

“It’s a big challenge, there’s no doubt about it but we need to try and make the case, that’s the important thing, we can’t afford to let the workforce down without putting to Honda that they should remain in Swindon.”

Honda executives said they made the decision to close the plant due to a desire to focus on producing electric cars, though Mrs Abbott suspected that Brexit was also a factor.

She added: “The Brexit negotiations are a shambles. Theresa May has been going around complaining that its MPs that are to blame but she needs to look in the mirror at every stage she’s been in charge of them – she chose the people to run it and that didn’t work out very well. Jeremy Corbyn and Keir Starmer have been talking to MPs in all parties to bring them together around a Brexit deal which has widespread support.”