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. The move comes amid mounting concern that government action so far is insufficient to avert chronic and lasting damage to UK manufacturing.

The campaign, led by Unite, marks the beginning of a sustained initiative, bringing together leading figures in business, politics and academia with the country's biggest union to press the case for a jobs strategy with manufacturing placed firmly at the heart of a national programme to propel the UK out of recession.

Unite for Jobs was launched at a press conference,10am, Tuesday, March 31st at Unite's King Street offices by an expert panel consisting of

· Tony Woodley, joint general secretary, Unite

· Derek Simpson, joint general secretary, Unite

· Lord Jones of Birmingham, (Digby Jones), former trade minister and ex-CBI chief

· Paul Everitt, CEO of the Society of Motor Manufacturers (invited)

· Professor David Bailey, Director of Birmingham Business School, University of Birmingham

· Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham

At the press conference, the speakers set out their ideas for action to preserve jobs, and in particular to restore the UK's manufacturing sector to the heart of the economy.

The press conference also announced a major initiative to mobilise the public for action on jobs.

According to Tony Woodley, joint general secretary of Unite: "The Government acted boldly when it came to rescuing those banks brought to their knees by greed and misdeeds of a few. Working people desperately need to see more of the same spirit when it comes to helping them keep their jobs.

"Every effort must be made to keep the lights on in factories and homes across the country. Government must now grasp the hand of expert help being offered so we work together to take the right road out of recession."

Derek Simpson, Unite joint general secretary added: "Daily, workers are paying the price for this recession with their jobs. Whether it is manufacturing, construction, finance or retail, the job losses are mounting up.

"This is the time to invest in support for existing jobs and to be clear on the strategy for creating new ones. We cannot allow this recession to destroy our skills base and our communities, and we must set out the vision for future success so that employers and workers can have confidence that the dark days of the recession will soon come to an end."

http://www.unitetheunion.com/campaigns/unite_for_jobs.aspx?lang=en-gb