A Brighton firm responsible for furnishing the Houses of Parliament and the QE2 is believed to have folded.

Maclean Furniture based in Hollingbury industrial estate, laid off 27 craftsmen days before Christmas after they refused to sign a new contract.

Trade union GMB is taking the company to an employment tribunal for unfair dismissal and to secure redundancy pay.

The union had been in talks with the factory's manager Peter Lowell but now believes the company has ceased operations altogether.

Today, a hand-written sign on the company's front door in Crowhurst Road reads: "This factory is closed" and its phone line has been disconnected. GMB has been told by its members that office and administration staff have also lost their jobs.

Previously called William L Maclean, the firm went into receivership in September last year with the loss of 40 jobs.

In October it was bought by Harvitech, which changed its name to Maclean Furniture. Hopes were high it would continue operating.

Events turned sour when employees, some of whom had worked for the company for 30 years, refused to sign a new contract after GMB claimed it contained illegal clauses.

The next day they were told they had been laid off until further notice.

GMB branch secretary Mark Turner said: "There is nothing happening at the factory and we believe the company has ceased operating. The 27 men who were laid off have now accepted they should find alternative work and other members, such as office staff, have also lost their jobs.

"It is absolutely diabolical for a company to treat such a dedicated workforce like this."

Mr Lowell refused to comment on the reported closure of the firm.

Mintpage Properties, the Birmingham-based owner of the building, has also failed to respond to inquiries from The Argus.

Brighton Pavilion MP David Lepper said: "At the end of last year officers from the city council's economic development unit contacted the company to offer assistance. That offer was not taken up."

The firm, established in 1974 has also taken orders from top hotels, including The Mayfair, and The Dorchester in London.

The company first experienced trouble during the Gulf War in 1991 and although orders picked up in the Nineties the terrorist attacks in September 2001 led to another decline.

Patrick Goff of online industry magazine hoteldesigns.co.uk, said the closure of Maclean would be a loss.

He said: "Maclean had a reputation for producing good furniture, especially when it came to big orders."