Nearly 90 staff at the Port of Dover had their jobs transferred to other companies on Wednesday, and another 34 took voluntary redundancy.

The services affected, mainly ship mooring, trailer handling and link span operation, are now being undertaken by either P&O Ferries or labour supply company OCS.

“The withdrawal of the port from directly providing these services and the introduction of competition within this market, now provides choice and flexibility to our customers and enables them to more directly control the cost of their landside provision in these difficult times,” said Mr Port of Dover chief executive Bob Goldfield.

This move by the Board is part of a long running change programme, intended to position the port for its further expansion, with the eventual construction of a second RoRo terminal in the western docks area and to improve business and operational efficiency.

“The Port of Dover is facing just the same challenges as any other business in these difficult times. We intend to continue introducing necessary change that will maintain our robust financial position and enhance the services we provide to our customers”.

In January staff working in the port's security-related services were transferred to G4S.