Scotland's first minister has piled more pressure on drinks group Diageo to reconsider plans to make 900 redundancies in its packaging and distilling operations. Alex Salmond said that "everyone" should support the campaign against the plans, which include the closure of a packing factory in Kilmarnock that bottles Johnnie Walker whisky. Salmond has signed a petition to stop Diageo closing the Kilmarnock plant and a distillery in Glasgow, a move he described as "not acceptable to the Scottish people". A huge rally is being planned in Kilmarnock to protest against the redundancies, while the issue is also due to be discussed at Westminster today. Thousands are expected to turn out at the rally in Kilmarnock, which has been dubbed the Keep Striding Forward' march and is part of a hastily-mounted Keep Johnnie Walker in Kilmarnock' campaign.
