A BULGING order book has helped save up to 30 jobs at Rolls-Royce's Barnoldswick plants and ensured there will be no job cuts next year, a union boss revealed today.

AEU works convenor John Boardman today said union officials were told by senior management that the need for compulsory job losses had gone away because of a multi-billion pound bumper order book for Trent engines.

The Barnoldswick plants supply wide chord fan blades for the engines.

"Because of a combination of people leaving voluntarily and also because of the workload increasing, they need people here," said Mr Boardman.

"Also based on the workload as it is now they said there would be no further manpower losses next year.

"We very much welcome this move. It's great news for the remaining workforce."

Pendle MP Gordon Prentice, who closely monitored the jobs situation at Rolls, said: "I'm very pleased it's worked out like this.

"I was speaking to the company secretary Charles Blundell at Farnborough Air Show about the situation at Barnoldswick. I told him it was absolute madness for the company not to show some kind of flexibility." Mr Boardman said around 120 of the 152 job losses announced by Rolls earlier this year had been met through staff taking voluntary redundancy although Mr Prentice said he believed the figure was closer to 135.

Unions threatened industrial action if the remaining numbers were made up through compulsory losses.

"The threat of industrial action has been lifted now that compulsory redundancies aren't going to happen," said Mr Boardman.

Mr Prentice said Rolls had a £13billion order book. "We have the astonishing situation where a company has a rosy future but is absolutely determined to drive down the cost of production even further by cutting staff," he added.

The increased workload does not take into account a further £1billion worth of business, including agreements for Trent engines worth tens of millions of pounds, clinched by Rolls at Farnborough.

The bulging order book was welcomed by Dennis Mendoros, chairman of the North West Aerospace Alliance, who said many East Lancashire firms depended on Rolls' success through sub-contracted work.

Nobody at Rolls was available to comment today.