SUPPORT is fast growing for a petition calling on Prime Minister Gordon Brown to put the UK-based Corus steel operations under state control.

By last night almost 1,300 people had signed the online petition to Number Ten which was only launched last week.

The flood of signatures follows Thursday's bombshell decision by Corus to axe further jobs in Scunthorpe - on top of the 500 announced last week.

In Westminster, Scunthorpe MP Elliot Morley has called for an early re-assembly of the Steel MPs All-Parliamentary Group to discuss unconfirmed reports that as many as 360 jobs could go in his constituency under the latest job cull by Corus.

Mr Morley added: "I am also seeking an update from the Business Secretary Lord Mandelsen over the state of the UK steel industry and what is being done to offer support."

A Corus spokeswoman dismissed the 360-job loss figure as 'speculation'.

She added: "We have yet to set a date for the meeting with the trade unions so they can hear our proposals."

The crunch meeting follows the decision of the unions to scrap a ballot among their 3,500 members in Scunthorpe over whether to back plans by Corus to save £72-million by next March.

The company has made it clear more jobs would have to go in the town if the plan is not backed.

But the unions claimed Corus had reneged on a national framework agreement last week by announcing the 500 job losses without prior consultation.

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