WORKERS at the closure-

threatened Kvaerner Govan shipyard were defiant last night following the issue of 250 redundancy notices just hours after delays had raised hopes that GEC may have been about to announce a buy-out that would keep the Clyde workforce intact.

Unions have pledged to keep fighting the closure and workers agreed that all those issued today with redundancy letters would take them unopened to shop steward Jamie Webster, who would return them to the company ensuring there were no volunteers for redundancy.

At a meeting in the morning, workers were told the expected notices activating redundancies had been delayed - raising hopes that a buy-out deal had been struck and there would be a last-minute reprieve. They agreed to continue working as normal and that no-one would volunteer for redundancy.

Later, however, union representatives were told by Kvaerner that it ''reluctantly'' had to implement redundancy notices, terminating the 250 jobs on July 16.

Mr Antti Pankakoski, head of Kvaerner's shipbuilding activities, said: ''Considering the fact that all the interested parties have had nearly three months to contemplate their interest, we are surprised and disappointed that no bids have been forthcoming to date. Regretfully, we now have no option but to commence this procedure.''

Scottish Secretary John Reid attempted to hold out some hope for the yard, saying that, although yesterday's news was a blow for workers, efforts were being made to secure the survival of the site.

''I understand how difficult this is for the workforce because of the uncertainty, but I want to assure them that discussions are still going on and we will continue to make every effort to ensure there is a future for the yard and the workforce,'' he said.

Earlier, the head of the Government task force brought in to try to find a buyer for the yard criticised the unions for conducting negotiations ''through the media''.

Sir Gavin Laird said: ''It is with considerable regret that we find ourselves placed in a position that Kvaerner has decided to be conducted and debated through the media. The one thing we don't want is to have a public debate about it while we are still trying to resolve the matter.''

He said the task force was due to meet again this morning and that a series of meetings about the yard was lined up during the rest of the week.

The task force was set up to find a buyer for the yard earlier this year after Kvaerner announced it was selling its worldwide shipbuilding interests, putting 1200 jobs at risk in Govan.

After a meeting with management yesterday afternoon, Mr Allan Curran, staff convener of the GMB, said the news was disappointing but workers remained confident of a GEC bid going ahead.

He added: ''It is in GEC's interest to take Kvaerner. They are going to be hit with penalty clauses because of late running contracts at Barrow and they need Govan to get them finished in time.''

If a bid is successful for the yard, the 250 redundancy notices will immediately be lifted, he said.

A source at the shipyard said it was expected that GEC would table a formal bid for the yard tomorrow.

Mr Paul Emberley, vice president of group communications at Kvaerner, said yesterday that he regretted the fact that workers may have had their hopes raised by the delay in activating the redundancy notices, which he said was due to a ''brief discussion'' in the morning following discussions throughout the weekend.

Leader comment Page 16