Hundreds of tobacco workers descended on Westminster yesterday to highlight the European legislation which they say threatens more than 10,000 UK jobs.

Many staff from British American Tobacco's (BAT) Rothmans plant in Darlington joined colleagues from across the country to lobby MPs to back their bid to block EU laws on cigarette tar levels.

Unions and the tobacco industry say the legislation to ban the manufacture and export of cigarettes above ten milligrammes of tar could threaten the very future of BAT's Darlington and Peterlee plants, where more than 550 are employed.

But the EU, with the backing of the Government, has rejected the concerns of the industry saying the legislation would not have "any serious negative employment consequences".

Labour MPs John Cummings and Fraser Kemp tabled a Commons motion urging the government to drop its support for the European directive.

Easington MP Mr Cummings and Mr Kemp, MP for Houghton and Washington East, warned that the directive could bring about the "export" of UK jobs.

And in a motion signed by 11 MPs, they voiced their concern that the job losses would bring "none of the health benefits claimed by the European Commission".

Mr Cummings, himself a smoker, told The Northern Echo: "I am not trying to protect smokers at all, but it is their choice. Taxation and regulation have failed and it is only through education that we can reduce the number of smokers."

After yesterday's rally, Ian Coverdale of the MSF Union at the Darlington plant, felt the event had been a success. "Our aim was to publicise this legislation not just to MPs but to people across the whole of the country," he said.

"I feel we have achieved that and we received a good reception from local MPs and hopefully they will spread the word."

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