But local anger in the east Midlands is being directed equally at a tiny group of allotment holders who have waged a long-running campaign to prevent the company moving to a new home on the edge of town.

Closure of the assembly operation, at the cost of 280 jobs, has been brought to a head by the decision of the company's former US owner to sell the existing site to Nottingham University. The sale, agreed in 1999 before the present management took over, left Raleigh looking for a new home from the end of next year.

Plans to relocate assembly to a purpose-built site next to an existing industrial estate at Bulwell on the edge of Nottingham have been stalled by legal challenges mounted by local allotment holders who would have been displaced.

According to the city council, which has been championing the move - and had found alternative allotment sites - only three of the 144 people affected had opposed the factory plan.

Local MP Graham Allen said he was angry that Raleigh's attempt to move had been delayed by what he described as a small group of selfish, politically motivated people.

"This was the straw that broke the camel's back," he said yesterday. "Had the planning issue been dealt with speedily, Raleigh would already have been on the site."

Raleigh chairman Phillip Darnton acknowledged that the delaying tactics had been profoundly irritating. But he said lower-cost, quality production in countries as diverse as China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Malaysia was at the root of the problem. Some suppliers were now able to undercut Nottingham-assembled bikes by up to 25%.

Fundamental changes had taken place in the global cycle industry since the previous owners decided to sell the present assembly site.

"Advances in the quality and cost of cycles from the far east over the past two years, and the likelihood that this region will become even more competitive, mean that reinvestment in a new assembly plant in the UK cannot now be financially justified."

The European industry's position has been further weakened by the collapse of anti-dumping duties against several far eastern countries. Even with high tariffs in place, Chinese imports surged last year.

Mr Darnton said Raleigh remained committed to supplying quality cycles built to its own standards by partner suppliers overseas. He said the company would seek different suppliers for different types of bikes but refused to identify the countries from which they were likely to be sourced.

The company, which started life in Raleigh Street, Nottingham 116 years ago, expects to retain about 100 staff in its sales, distribution and design departments following the assembly shutdown, which is due to take place at the end of the year.