Provisional liquidator Tom MacLennan of Tenon Corporate Recovery said that 19 employees were made redundant last week but 10 kept on to fulfil orders.

He said, “We will continue trading in the short term, but we don’t anticipate selling the business as a going concern.

“The main focus just now is to complete as many of the orders as possible and realise as much money as we can.

“We have spoken to a few people, but we consider it unlikely the business will be bought.

“The losses the company has been making are a major issue, but there is also the fact that the disruption caused by the previous receivership had an impact on early trading for the company.”

Thomas Justice & Sons, the trading name of PLA Furniture Ltd, is expected to complete its present orders within a month.

Mr MacLennan will then make a full report on the company’s affairs to a meeting of creditors, likely to take place in early May.

The firm was acquired by some members of its management team from a receiver in July last year.

It had actually gone into receivership three months earlier.

Prior to receivership, Justice & Sons had a workforce of around 40.

Half of those were made redundant, but some were subsequently re-employed following the management buy-out.

In recent years, the company has been involved in a number of major contracts for hotel companies and property development groups at its Brunel Road factory at Wester Gourdie Industrial Estate.

* Dundee has more than made its case to be a “hub” for health-related civil service jobs in Scotland, a city MSP said today, writes Ian Findlay, industrial reporter.

Now Dundee East’s SNP representative at Holyrood, Shona Robison, who is also her party’s spokesperson on health, is to make a fresh call to the Executive to speed up long-awaited decisions over the relocation of two departments from Edinburgh to Scotland’s fourth city.

“Someone really needs to knuckle down and make a decision over these jobs, there has already been far too long a delay,” Ms Robison told the Evening Telegraph today.

The two departments are NHS Health Scotland (formerly Health Education Board Scotland) with just over 80 staff and NHS Education Scotland, which has 100 staff.

Announcements about their relocation were expected before New Year, but did not materialise.

Decisions were then expected in the early part of this year, but so far the Executive has still to say where the departments are to go.

Earlier this year Ms Robison raised the delays over the decisions with the Scottish Executive and it was conceded they had been postponed.

Last week the Executive said it was still hoped to announce decisions “during the first half of the year.” However, there was no indication when this might happen.

Ms Robison said today she remained convinced the delays were connected with the wrangle surrounding the switching of the HQ of Scottish Natural Heritage to Inverness.

She said, however, there were certain circumstances specific to SNH, which did not apply as far as the other dispersals were concerned.

“I don’t think it is an excuse to go slow on other dispersals,” she commented. “It’s time for them to make some decisions. I will be raising the issue again with the Executive in the hope that decisions can be speeded up — and in Dundee’s favour.

“Dundee has more than made its case to receive relocated civil service departments, particularly health-related jobs.”

Ms Robison said the city’s case to become a hub for health functions was strong because of the activity at Ninewells Hospital, which was a centre for medical teaching, the major developments in life sciences locally and other factors.

Dundee has had some significant success in attracting Westminister-related civil service jobs, but there has been a strong argument that Holyrood has so far fallen short of what it should be doing for the city.

This issue was one of those raised at a summit in the city last week attended by Deputy First Minister Jim Wallace, who was challenged to ensure more Holyrood civil service post are moved to the city.

“The Executive has still to prove itself on that front,” said Ms Robison.

“The question of whether it has fulfilled its pledge over dispersals as far as Dundee is concerned will, to some extent, be answered when decisions are announced over the two health departments.”

* The future of 100 jobs at Caithness Glass in Perth appears to have been secured after Midlothian company Edinburgh Crystal finalised a deal to buy the factory and visitor centre. For the last two months, there has been uncertainty at the Inveralmond site, after the closure of centres at Wick and Oban and the takeover by receivers Deloitte and Touche on February 19.

Now those receivers have confirmed a sale has taken place and, although they refused to release figures, it is understood a seven-figure sum is involved.

The move gives Caithness Glass in Perth its sixth owner in just 13 years, and many of its details — not least how it will affect the 350 workers at Edinburgh Crystal’s Penicuik factory — remain unresolved. However, for now, sources suggest the Perth jobs have been saved by the sale, which also involves six jobs at the company’s other remaining site in Norfolk.

A spokesman for the receivers said, “Deloitte insolvency specialist John Reid is pleased to announce that the sale of the business and assets of Caithness Glass Ltd Perth and Kings Lynn sites was completed with a subsidiary of Edinburgh Crystal glass company. The sale secures the future of the Perth and Kings Lynn sites and brings together two of Scotland’s leading giftware brands.”

Although the situation has brightened for workers in Perth, the sale does nothing for the Caithness Glass centres further north. In Wick, the original home of the company, the last workers lost their jobs last week.