THOUSANDS of angry steelworkers lay siege to Corus plants across Europe yesterday in the face of a renewed threat to their jobs.

Delighted union leaders said the European day of protest was one of the biggest industrial demonstrations in recent years.

On Teesside, more than 1,500 people at the Corus steel plants at Redcar, Lackenby and Hartlepool gathered with symbolic "red cards" for chairman Sir Brian Moffat - a call for his resignation.

In scenes repeated at Corus plants across Britain and the Netherlands, workers gathered amid fears that massive job cuts are planned.

Debts at the Anglo-Dutch steel maker are near the £1.7bn mark, and company bosses have warned that one of its major steel operations is set to close.

That has caused outrage among Teesside's 3,000 workers directly employed by Corus and 7,000 ancillary workers.

They claim that with 12,000 British jobs already shed by Corus since 1999 and with efficiency targets being met by the workers, the fault lies with senior management. The company is in negotiations with its bankers and says an announcement on its future will be released once those talks are completed.

At Lackenby, hundreds of workers gathered at the huge steel plant where they were met by wives, girlfriends and children.

Some of the workers left their places of work, although many others stayed at their posts to keep production going. The Iron and Steel Trades Confederation (ISTC) said Sir Brian had led the company into crisis and should leave.

Corus chief executive Tony Pedder resigned in March after the company announced losses of £458m.

Sir Brian has announced he plans to retire in the coming months. However, union leaders do not want him to have influence over the appointment of his successor or a new chief executive.

The protestors at the Redcar plant included union leaders, Stockton South MP Dari Taylor and the leader of Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, David Walsh. Also there were Barry and Joyce Heseltine, of Redcar, and their children, Christopher and Richard. Mrs Heseltine explained why she and her husband had brought their family along to protest.

"My husband and all the workers have really delivered," she said. "All the reports say Teesside is one of the most efficient plants in Europe.

"It's hard to sleep with something like this hanging over your family.

"God knows what will happen to Redcar if the plant was to close, it would just be a ghost town."

Tony Poynter, chairman of the Teesside multi-union committee, said: "The problems of the company are not the fault of the workers. The fault lies within the board at Corus and, particularly, with the chairman, Sir Brian Moffat."

That was greeted with chants of "Moffat Out" and was followed by messages of support from David Walsh, Dari Taylor and Redcar MP Vera Baird.

She said: "Sir Brian has dragged Corus from a cash-rich company to a debt-laden one in less than four years. Corus appear to have no idea what their announcement has meant in terms of anxiety and anguish for Corus workers."

Those views were echoed by Dutch steelmen. Jos Duijnhoven, national officer of the FNV Bondgenoten, said: "Dutch employees of Corus are fully in agreement with our UK colleagues in the belief that Sir Brian Moffat should resign immediately. He has led the company in an arrogant style which has alienated the workforce and managers alike.

" In the Netherlands today we also showed Sir Brian the 'red card' and hope that he gets the message."

Commenting on the protests, a group spokesman said: "Corus regrets the stance that the unions are taking. We understand that this day of action is designed to be symbolic and will not affect our production or customer service."

The ISTC plans another demonstration at the Corus AGM on April 29, when thousands of red cards will be presented to Sir Brian calling on him to go.