Allister brands overseas bus contract decision ‘outrageous’ in backing for Wrightbus

North Antrim MP Jim Allister at the wheel of a Wrightbus electroliner vehicle.

North Antrim MP Jim Allister has sharply criticised the decision to award the bulk of a £45 million Scottish Government contract for zero-emission buses and coaches to a Chinese manufacturer, describing the move as “outrageous” and warning it represents a failure to support UK industry.

The intervention comes as pressure continues to mount over the allocation of public funding away from domestic manufacturers, including Ballymena-based Wrightbus — one of Northern Ireland’s most significant industrial employers and the UK’s last remaining domestic bus maker.

Mr Allister said the decision was particularly difficult to defend given Wrightbus’s position as a leading manufacturer of electric and hydrogen-powered buses.

“It is outrageous that the bulk of a £45 million Scottish Government contract for zero-emission buses and coaches is set to go to a Chinese manufacturer.

“At a time when taxpayers’ money should be strengthening our own economy, it is instead being used to support jobs and industry on the other side of the world.

“That is indefensible — particularly when we have a global leader in bus manufacturing here at home in Wrightbus.”

Westminster warning revisited

The North Antrim MP said he had already raised concerns over the issue in Westminster Hall just weeks ago, warning that political commitments to backing British industry would ring hollow if major contracts continued to be awarded overseas.

“Little more than a month ago, I warned in Westminster Hall that rhetoric about backing British industry is meaningless if, in practice, contracts of this scale are handed overseas and specifically to China.

“That warning has now been borne out.”

His comments follow criticism from Wrightbus owner Jo Bamford, who earlier described the decision as a “national scandal”, arguing that taxpayer money should not be used to support factories overseas while jobs in places like Ballymena are at stake.

Concern over impact on local manufacturing

For Ballymena, where Wrightbus employs more than 2,000 people, the row has sparked renewed focus on the wider economic consequences of public procurement decisions.

Mr Allister also pointed to previous comments from the Chancellor on the importance of domestic production.

“The Chancellor has said that ‘where things are made, and who makes them, matters’. Yet decisions like this prove those words are not being matched by action.

“This is not just a missed opportunity — it is a direct failure to back UK manufacturing.”

He concluded with a call for a change in approach.

“It is simply not acceptable that British taxpayers are funding foreign industry while our own manufacturers are overlooked.

“It is time the UK started backing its own.”

The remarks are likely to intensify political scrutiny around the contract award and add further weight to calls for stronger support for homegrown manufacturing, particularly in Northern Ireland where Wrightbus remains a major employer and symbol of industrial recovery.

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At a glance

• Jim Allister has criticised a £45 million bus contract decision

• The bulk of the contract is set to go to a Chinese manufacturer

• The North Antrim MP described the move as “outrageous”

• He said taxpayers’ money should support UK jobs and industry

• Wrightbus in Ballymena is the UK’s last domestic bus manufacturer

• More than 2,000 people are employed locally at the plant

• The comments follow earlier criticism from owner Jo Bamford

• Political pressure is growing over support for UK manufacturing