Tesco distribution boss tweets his delight after pushing through hundreds of job losses Distribution director Steve Strachota described the news as 'a bit of luck' Among closing Tesco depots are those at Harlow, Weybridge and Chesterfield Harlow MP Robert Halfon slammed move as 'callous' An angry MP hit out at Tesco today after a senior boss gloated at the closing of five depots, with the loss of thousands of jobs. The supermarket giant's distribution director Steve Strachota tweeted triumphantly that the closures - and opening of three new depots - showed 'awesome teamwork, courageous leadership and a bit of luck'. But MP Robert Halfon has slammed Tesco as callous for axing one of the depots in his constituency in Harlow, Essex - with the loss of more than 800 jobs. An angry MP hit out at Tesco today after distribution director Steve Strachota gloated at the closing of five depots, with the loss of thousands of jobs The tweet, which was posted on Steve Strachota's (above) account, has now been deleted He said: 'I find it sad that a company that I have had huge respect for seems to be so callous in their treatment of workers, many of whom have given more than 20 years of service to Tesco. I shall tell Tesco that given what has happened here in Harlow and the upset it has caused to many people, your senior managers appear to be wallowing in what they have done. Mr Halfon has now tabled an Early Day Motion stating 'This House is disappointed at the treatment of Tesco distribution centre workers in Harlow and notes that Tesco's UK and Ireland distribution director Steve Strachota tweeted: "Five depots closing, three new ones ready to go. Awesome teamwork, courageous leadership and a bit of luck. #worldclass. 'This has been seen by many Tesco workers in Harlow and their families, many of whom have given over 20 years' loyal service to Tesco and therefore the House urges Tesco to condemn this tweet and recognise the upset that this has caused to Harlow workers.' The tweet, which was posted on Mr Strachota's account a month ago, has now been deleted. A spokesman for Tesco said: 'The tweet was intended to acknowledge that difficult decisions had been taken in order to make significant changes to our distribution network. Steve has spoken to our colleagues at Harlow in person to explain this and they recognised that it should be seen in that context. Nonetheless, we sincerely apologise if the tweet caused any offence, and it has now been removed. In February this year, Tesco announced it was shutting existing depots including those at Harlow, Weybridge (Surrey) and Chesterfield (Derbyshire) with the loss of 2,000 jobs but setting up new centres at Reading, Dagenham and Fenny Lock, in Milton Keynes, which the firm says will create 2,000 new jobs. Meanwhile, sites in Daventry (Northamptonshire) and Middlewich (Cheshire) are being relocated to Fenny Lock. The Harlow depot, about 30 miles north of London, is being shut as part of an upgrade of the company's delivery network. The depot (above) in Harlow, Essex, is being shut as part of an upgrade of the company's delivery network - with a loss of more than 800 jobs A spokesman for Tesco said workers in Essex would be offered work at the new bases and that it hoped 'to keep as many people in jobs as possible'. Reading is 76 miles away from Harlow, while Dagenham is around 25 miles away. The news is a devastating blow to Harlow, where 9.9 per cent are unemployed, compared to the national average of 7.9 per cent. Harlow MP Robert Halfon (above) has slammed Tesco as callous for axing the depot in his constituency One worker told local newspaper The Harlow Star: 'There are people who have worked at this depot for over 20 years. 'They're not going to uproot their families and move to Reading or Dagenham.' Last week, Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith pledged to send a Government 'hit-team' to Harlow to support staff affected by the impending closure. He said his department would do 'all it could' to help workers who faced either redundancy or relocation to Tesco's new depot in Dagenham. 'I was very concerned to hear of the difficulties facing staff at the Tesco depot in Harlow,' Mr Duncan-Smith said. To that end, I will be asking the department to assign a "hit-team" to Harlow to find out more about how we can help. This will involve discussions with Tesco management and liaising with JobCentre Plus specialists to make sure staff are given all the help and support they need to find alternative work, as well as making sure that issues over disability allowances and terms and conditions are properly resolved before workers are relocated.