Uproar as Foreign Office helps Koreans into 2012 jobs

Gordon Brown faced fresh troubles today over jobs for British workers after it emerged that the Government is actively backing foreign firms to win contracts for the London Olympics.

Britain's ambassador to South Korea Martin Uden revealed that companies abroad are being encouraged to bid for work for the 2012 Games and expressed "surprise" that bringing in foreign firms could cause concern although hundreds of thousands of workers here are losing their job in the recession.

There are still 70,000 contracts for the Games worth a total of £8billion to be awarded and on a blog, Mr Uden said: "I'd be delighted to see as many Korean companies as possible competing for and winning these contracts."

He pledged that trade officials at the British Embassy in Seoul would help Korean firms with their bids.

Tory MP Oliver Heald who sits on the Commons work and pensions committee, said: "It's time for Mr Brown to explain exactly what he really means by 'British jobs for British workers'."

Latest government figures have shown that more than 10,000 foreign citizens have been given National Insurance numbers to work in London's Olympic borough.