FORD has announced almost 700 voluntary redundancies among its UK workforce - 625 hourly-paid employees and 55 salaried staff.

The programme is due to take effect immediately and finish towards the end of July, with the bulk of the 440 hourly-paid redundancies split equally between Ford's Dagenham and Halewood plants. Dagenham workers have been on a four-day week producing the Fiesta since last October.