THE loss of 155 jobs at Axa Insurance is a body blow to those directly affected and a blow to the district as a whole.

Sadly it is a sign of things to come and we need to two things very quickly indeed.

We must challenge and change the Labour government's commitment to a 'globalised' economy. This is the root cause of the problem.

And secondly, we must put far more effort into the kinds of things that can't be relocated to India. This means much more emphasis must be put on local businesses that can employ local people in remanufacturing consumer goods from waste, designing and manufacturing small scale wind and solar power technology, making our buildings energy efficient, growing local food for local use, running more public transport and using fewer cars and training local people in a wide variety of new skills.

The age of traditional economic development based on attracting new investment in call centres and similar highly mobile activities is a dead duck. The sooner we realise this the better it will be for everyone.

Cllr John Whitelegg, Lancaster and District Green Party