Newly merged drugs company Glaxo SmithKline is slashing more than 1,000 manufacturing jobs across Britain, in an announcement which has provoked fury from unions and politicians.  The redundancies are the first big cuts since the group was created last year through a tie-up between Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham.  The casualties will include 500 workers producing asthma inhalers at a plant in Speke, Merseyside, which is to be shut down over the next three years. Another 400 jobs will be lost at a factory in Barnard Castle, Durham, which makes medicines such as migraine treatment Imigram and ulcer drug Zantac.  The Manufacturing, Science and Finance union said it was "particularly angry" at the Speke closure, which is in an "objective-one" area, designated in need of investment by the European Union.  An MSF spokesman said: "We're pissed off with the European competition authorities - they approved this merger without including a clause to protect these kinds of areas."  He said the union would be writing to EU president Romano Prodi, asking him to provide aid to compensate for this "lack of diligence".  Liverpool MP Maria Eagle said she was "saddened and appalled" by the news, and complained that until recently, Glaxo had refused her requests for a meeting.  Glaxo said the Speke closure was partly due to environmental guidelines prohibiting the use of CFCs in inhalers. A company spokesman said: "Clearly, we regret the need for loss of jobs and we're committed to providing extensive support for the employees and communities affected."  Glaxo intends to sell a chemicals site in Montrose, Scotland, which has 720 staff, although it still intends to buy products from the factory. A toothpaste plant in Plymouth is to close, with the loss of 170 jobs, and about 110 staff will be cut at a facility in Dungarvan, Ireland.  The MSF said the cuts reinforced its view that the merger could result in a reduction of between 2,000 and 5,000 from Glaxo's 25,000-strong workforce in Britain. Its spokesman said: "5,000 is probably a conservative estimate."  Glaxo insisted there would be no more big redundancy programmes in manufacturing. However, several hundred jobs are likely to go in research and development, and job losses in administration could number more than a thousand as Glaxo and SmithKline combine their vast head office complexes in a new site in Brentford, west London.  Despite the cuts, the Transport & General Workers Union praised Glaxo's record as an employer. Its national organiser Jim Mowatt said: "Any merger of this size means a blitz of P45s. The company are treating people well and there have been no surprises."  Mr Mowatt said he was relieved that Glaxo was still demonstrating a commitment to Britain: "The good news is that the company's staying British and staying here."  A quarter of Glaxo's workforce is in Britain, including 40% of all research and development staff and a fifth of its manufacturing employees.  Glaxo's French-born chief executive, Jean-Pierre Garnier, has shown little sentimentality about the company's home country. He has based himself in Philadelphia and he said last year that if the environment becomes "hostile" in Britain, he will not hesitate to move operations abroad.  Glaxo has 115 manufacturing sites in 40 countries. It expects the merger to yield annual savings of pounds 1.6bn by 2003, including pounds 570m of cuts from combining production facilities.  Reviews of research, sales and administration jobs are continuing. Classification Language: ENGLISH Subject: MANUFACTURING FACILITIES (89%); LAYOFFS (89%); LABOR UNIONS (78%); EUROPEAN UNION (78%); FACTORY WORKERS (78%); LABOR FORCE (78%); BUSINESS FINANCIAL TROUBLE (78%); ASTHMA (76%); RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT (73%); SEVERANCE PAY (72%); HEADACHES (70%); INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ORGANIZATIONS (70%) Company: GLAXOSMITHKLINE PLC (92%); GLAXOSMITHKLINE PLC (92%); EUROPEAN UNION (56%); EUROPEAN UNION (56%) Organization: EUROPEAN UNION (56%); EUROPEAN UNION (56%); EUROPEAN UNION (56%); EUROPEAN UNION (56%) Ticker: GSK (NYSE) (92%); GSK (LSE) (92%); BIOC (EGX) (92%); GSK (NYSE) (92%); GSK (LSE) (92%); BIOC (EGX) (92%) Industry: DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEMS (90%); PHARMACEUTICAL PREPARATION MFG (90%); PHARMACEUTICALS INDUSTRY (90%); SOAPS & DETERGENTS MFG (89%); MANUFACTURING FACILITIES (89%); AEROSOL DRUGS (78%); GASTROINTESTINAL AGENTS (78%); FACTORY WORKERS (78%); TOOTHPASTES & GELS (72%) Person: ROMANO PRODI (51%) Geographic: LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND (79%); LONDON, ENGLAND (78%); UNITED KINGDOM (92%); EUROPEAN UNION MEMBER STATES (88%); IRELAND (79%); SCOTLAND (79%); EUROPE (76%)