Thats coz they can't lay people off else where... YET
All the initial layoffs in Europe will be in the UK because they can.
In other European countries they can't lay anyone off till they've gone through a couple of years worth of negotiations in the Unions. If previous rounds of HP blood letting are anything to go by, once all the hoops have been jumped through the layoffs the other side of the channel will make Agincourt look like a teddy bears picnic.