UNIONS last night vowed to fight plans by a Wirral bakery to make almost half its workforce redundant.

Manor Bakeries in Moreton, which makes Mr Kipling cakes, announced the closure of two lines in its factory with the loss of 238 jobs.

The company which employs around 550 people in Moreton and has had a presence there for almost 50 years, last night blamed over-capacity in the market place.

Manor Bakeries added it would now concentrate production at a factory in Stoke and another near Barnsley, while one in Eastleigh, Hampshire, would close completely.

Last night, though, Tony McQuade, of the TGWU which represents workers there, said they would challenge the job losses.

Manor Bakeries is the largest manufacturer in the growing £1bn UK cake market, producing some of the country's most recognised cake brands, including Mr Kipling and Cadbury's cakes.

Mr McQuade said: "We will be doing everything in our power to oppose these redundancies, but we can only do that when we have more details."

Management were spending yesterday afternoon going through the redundancy plans with staff at the plant. Those leaving the morning shift yesterday said they were "disgusted" and "shocked" by the news.

One employee, who refused to give his name, said there had been rumours for months about the future of the factory. "We hadn't been told anything, it's come right out of the blue."

General manager of the Moreton factory, Kelvin Heywood, said the closure was "extremely regrettable". However, he added that it would secure the jobs of those people remaining at the Moreton site.

"We are in the process of briefing employees. We have an over-capacity in the cake business, and there is a need for us to rationalise that," he said. "We believe this will give Moreton and Manor Bakeries employees a more secure future than if we do nothing."

The redundancies are to be phased in over 18 months. Management have promised to consult with employees and help them find alternative employment.

Mr Heywood said the workforce were very emotional when the announcement was made.

He added: "They need time to come to terms with it. But this is providing secure employment for those remaining."

At the same time as announcing the redundancies the company has said it will invest £45m in its cake producing business over the next three years.