Administrators appointed at Stoneywood Paper Mill

Stoneywood Paper Mill - which has operated for more than 250 years - went into administration last Thursday with the loss of more than 300 jobs.

On Thursday afternoon, staff were told to come to a meeting an hour later, and were informed that administrators had been appointed.

Scottish Enterprise has given the mill owners more than 12 m of support over the last three years.

With 368 of the group's 463 UK-based employees being made redundant, administrators have now been appointed at the Arjowiggins Group mills in Stoneywood, Kent.

95 staff were retained at the two sites to continue limited activities while the administrators explored the possibility that the mills and assets could be sold.

He told BBC Scotland: "They were dismissed without any consultation, and there is a duty on employers to carry out what is called a collective consultation where they propose to dismiss 20 or more people from a single workplace."

The redundancies came completely out of the blue, and that means the employees are all entitled to claim a protective award of up to 90 days' pay per employee. The joint administrators did not want to make any comment on any legal action that may be taken.