HUNDREDS of North-East steel jobs have been saved following a dramatic turnaround by Corus.

Steel bosses have decided against awarding rail work to an outside contractor, following hard lobbying by unions.

A decision by Corus to keep the work in-house, underpinning 350 jobs on Teesside, has been greeted with delight by trade unionists and politicians alike.

Only 16 months ago, Corus announced 6,300 jobs would go, 1,100 of them on Teesside.

A Corus spokesman said the lobbying had led them to change their mind about outsourcing the work for the English Welsh and Scottish Railway (EWS). "In that respect, the decision has been taken not to proceed with the EWS outsourcing proposal but to achieve internal benefits instead."

Tony Poynter, spokesman for the steel unions, said: "Sense is being shown all round. There seems to be light at the end of the tunnel and it should all be a boost for the workers' morale.''

Coun David Walsh, leader of Redcar and Cleveland Council said: "As a former steel worker I am particularly pleased to se these jobs are staying locally based. Distribution from the Teesside steel works has always been handled in-house and there is a good reason for that, in that it provides very good quality control.'