BAE's £6bn UAE contract falls through

A proposed £6bn deal between BAE Systems and the United Arab Emirates is unlikely to reach completion.

The UAE had expressed interest in purchasing up to Eurofighter Typhoon military jets after prime minister David Cameron visited last month. However, in a recent statement, BAE said the deal would not be progressing "at this time".

Manufacture of parts for the jet, and final assembly, takes place at BAE's two Lancashire sites, which employ 10,000 between them.

The statement read: "BAE Systems and the UK government have been in discussions with the government of the United Arab Emiratesregarding a range of defence and security capabilities including the potential supply of Typhoon aircraft. The UAE have advised that they have elected not to proceed with these proposals at this time. "All parties have invested significant effort in drawing up Typhoon proposals for the UAE and, recognising the risk, scale and complexity of such a transaction, the group had not built this prospect into its planning assumptions. BAE Systems stands ready to work with the UAE to address any future requirements."