THE £70m deal between pop star Robbie Williams and EMI seems ludicrous by any standards.

It will rub salt into the wounds of former Mayor David Cox and the 191 others who were made redundant by the closure of the company's pressing plant in Swindon.

It is Coun Cox's misfortune that at 55 he is at an age when employers seem to think skilled men are past it.

It might console him to know that young Mr Williams is likely to reach that stage much sooner.