You must save the UK car industry, Unite tells the PM

The union claims the industry could be "devastated" due to "City greed and recklessness", but also maintains when the economy improves demand will increase and Britain will need to have its manufacturing industry in place to respond.

Tata, the Indian company that owns Jaguar Land Rover, has injected money to protect the suffering manufacturer, but Unite joint general secretary Tony Woodley argues the prime minister should follow suit.

He said: "Car workers and their families should not have to pay the price for the economic storm. The blame lies with greedy bankers and not with the skilled hard-working employees of Jaguar, Land Rover and Vauxhall.

"Now is the moment for Gordon Brown to be bold and give our car industry the backing already offered to the financial services and construction sectors."