HOPES of an 11th hour reprieve for Glasgow's two shipyards were sunk today when union officials confirmed 835 jobs were to be axed.

The news was announced at a series of mass meetings throughout the day at the Scotstoun and Govan yards, before union representatives travelled to Rosyth to speak to almost 700 Clyde-based workers helping to assemble new aircraft carriers at the Fife yard.

It means almost a third of the shipyard jobs at the yards will go.

The meetings followed two days of talks this week between the unions and executives at BAE Systems. The defence contractor - the largest outside America - owns both yards.

Both parties met at BAE's headquarters in Farnborough, Hampshire, after it was revealed earlier this month that jobs were being axed because of a shortfall in orders.

The major cost cuts will also see the loss of some 940 staff posts and 170 agency workers at Portsmouth. The firm is also halting shipbuilding at the English port.

Union leaders were given a "department by department" breakdown of the numbers during the Farnborough talks.

Duncan McPhee, co-convener at the Scotstoun yard: "We are not going public with the

details until the entire workforce has been told first.

"But we can confirm the total job losses on the Clyde will be 835 and yesterday BAE entered into an official consultation period."

Yard bosses say no time limit has been placed on the consultation period and that it will continue indefinitely in the hope job losses can be achieved as painlessly as possible.

A BAE spokesman said: "We have held two days of constructive discussions with our trade unions.

"This is the start of an extensive consultation process and we are committed to working tirelessly together to explore all potential options to mitigate the impact of our proposals on our employees. It is inappropriate to comment further at this stage."

Hugh Scullion, general secretary of the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions, said attempts were still being made to reduce the number of job losses.

He said: "We are ruling nothing in and ruling nothing out."

Both sides are hoping the cuts will be achieved through voluntary redundancy.

A trawl for volunteers will begin on Monday.

gordon.thomson@eveningtimes.co.uk