Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) suppliers are pushing to secure defence and aerospace work amid fears that cuts at Britain's biggest carmaker will trigger job losses across the industry.

The group of 15 manufacturers – which includes companies such as Evtec, Sovereign Industrial Group, Sertec, Artifex Interior Systems and Scottish Leather – are concerned that cuts at JLR could have a ripple effect through the supply chain.

In an effort to protect jobs, they are exploring whether production lines could be refocused on defence or aerospace work as tens of billions of pounds are poured into rearmament efforts across Europe.

The push echoes moves by manufacturers in Germany, which are also responding to a downturn in the automotive industry by seeking military work. This week, Volkswagen sold one of its biggest car plants so it can be turned into a weapons factory.

The JLR suppliers collectively employ around 12,000 staff and have revenues of £2bn.

But they face the prospect of reduced demand as their biggest customer cuts 4,000 jobs and seeks £1.7bn in savings amid competition from China and a hit from Donald Trump's tariffs.

David Roberts, founder of Coventry-based Evtec, warned that JLR was an anchor customer for many of the businesses and that losing its "critical mass" would hit their ability to supply the wider industry, including smaller luxury brands such as Bentley and Aston Martin.

Mr Roberts said there was a risk that a drop in work from JLR would force suppliers to lay people off with valuable skills.

He said: "It's almost inevitable that we're going to see a contraction in automotive.

"You are potentially losing a lot of well-paid, long-term jobs if you're not careful, and once you lose them, they ain't coming back.

"So some of us have got together and we are positioning to move towards aerospace and defence.

"The Government has said it would like to see more done by UK factories and automotive manufacturers can move very quickly."

He said the companies were seeking help from the Government to become accredited with the Ministry of Defence and support to match them with contracts they could tender for.

With JLR expected to begin compulsory redundancies in October, Mr Roberts said time was of the essence.

Bosses at JLR said the cuts were necessary "to build a stronger, more competitive" business.

PB Balaji, the carmaker's chief executive, said on Monday: "We recognise this will be difficult news for colleagues affected, and are committed to supporting everyone with care, fairness and respect."

The cuts represent a setback to Andy Burnham's pledge to reindustrialise Britain.

It is understood they will largely fall on white-collar, salaried workers across JLR's UK business and not employees working in car production.

Some staff working in the manufacturer's overseas divisions are expected to be given the opportunity to take voluntary redundancy, which could reduce the effect on Britain. Around 30,000 of JLR's 44,000 employees are based in the UK.

JLR's global headquarters are in Coventry, while it operates major factories in Solihull, Wolverhampton and Merseyside.

A government spokesman said on Tuesday: "We understand that this will be an uncertain and concerning time for affected workers, their families and wider communities.

"We remain in close contact with JLR, and the Business Secretary spoke to the West Midlands Mayor over the weekend to ensure government is doing all it can to support the business and its suppliers."

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