BAE job losses 'political' says defence analyst

Hundreds of jobs are expected to be lost at three UK shipyards.

The announcement by defence contractor BAE Systems is likely to affect workers at the Govan and Scotstoun shipyards in Glasgow and at its site in Portsmouth.

The fate of the three yards had been due to be revealed on Thursday, but was brought forward to Wednesday morning.

Speaking ahead of the announcement, Dr Phillips O'Brien, of the Scottish Centre for War Studies at Glasgow University, said: "If you don't have orders on the books, you are going to have to lose jobs. The interesting thing is if the government in London actually has a disproportionately large number of job losses in Portsmouth which some people are saying might happen."

Former BBC defence correspondent Chris Lee said: "It is a straightforward industrial problem. Once you stop making something, what else have you got to make?"