Business leaders across the Midlands have called on the Government to develop RAF Cosford and create 2,500 new jobs for the region.

Letters have been written to the Ministry of Defence, demanding the RAF base located between Telford and Wolverhampton be turned into a national centre of business excellence.

Such a move would not only safeguard 4,000 jobs but also could generate another 2,500, said John Hart, chairman of the West Midlands Business Council.

He said: "We have written to Defence Minister Don Touhig urging the Government to develop Cosford.

"The base is critical for the West Midlands regional economy. Thanks to the location of the Defence College of Aeronautical Engineering, firms in Shropshire, Wolverhampton and the Black Country have prospered

"As part of the Ministry of Defence's Training Review, if the college was developed as a national centre of excellence then not only will 4,000 jobs be secured because of direct and indirect employment linked to the base but an additional 2,500 jobs could be created."

Nick Graham, managing director at the Shropshire Chamber of Commerce, said: "Cosford is as important to the regional economy as Marconi and Rover. Given the loss of jobs at the Army Base Repair Organisation in Donnington it is essential these skills are retained."