'Made in Britain' no longer such a proud boast

The Marks & Spencer name was once virtually synonymous with the "Made in Britain" tag.

As recently as five years ago, M&S's proud boast was that it bought 90 per cent of its clothing from Britain and 10 per cent from overseas suppliers.

Today, however, that has been reversed, with a mere 10 per cent of its supplies now being sourced from British makers.

The vast majority of the overseas supplies come to M&S via agents, who charge commission for their services. Today's moves will see the group cut out many of those middlemen and deal directly with the suppliers. This, it says, will simplify the supply chain and further reduce costs at M&S.

Jude Brimble, national officer for clothing and textiles, at the GMB union, said: "M&S's decision to source yet more work abroad is a devastating blow for the British clothing industry.

"Over 35,000 jobs have already been lost in the last two years, many as a result of M&S's decision to source over 90 per cent of its clothes from abroad.

"Behind the figures is a terrible impact that M&S's decision has had on individuals, their families and whole communities. The GMB urges M&S customers to check their clothes are made in the UK."

The switch to overseas suppliers may have provided a boost to the group's flagging profits, but it has had a huge impact on the British textiles industry, leading to thousands of job losses.

Peter Salsbury, then M&S chief executive, wielded the axe so freely he was dubbed "the Butcher of Baker Street".