Michael Matheson has expressed his deep disappointment at news that Marks & Spencer are planning to close their store on Falkirk High Street.

The Falkirk West MSP said: “This announcement is a huge blow for our town centre. It’s a sad day when a well-established retailer such as M&S no longer thinks it’s viable to continue trading on the High Street of a town the size of Falkirk.

“My immediate concern is for the 90 staff working at the store. While I’ve been assured that they will be offered redeployment before redundancy is considered, it’s likely that this won’t be an attractive or feasible option for many of them.

“I’m also extremely worried about the impact this closure will have on our town centre, not least because M&S is one of the major tenants of Howgate Shopping Centre and the kind of brand that helps to attract shoppers to the High Street.”