Manufacturing Matters

Leaders of general union Unite have called on MPs to back their "Manufacturing Matters" campaign and for stronger government support for the sector.

Their call came as official figures showed that manufacturing lost 46,000 jobs in the three months to May on a year earlier, and employment in the sector was down to a record low of 2.96 million.

Joint general secretaries Tony Woodley and Derek Simpson have written to MPs telling them that "manufacturing is the backbone of our economy" but is "under real pressure".