WORKERS at Southampton Airport are today fearing for their jobs after owner BAA admitted it was considering staff cuts under "an efficiency review".

Reports the company was considering axing as many as 2,000 jobs at its seven UK airports were denied by a spokesman, who said no decision had yet been taken on the number of positions to go.

No frontline security or customer service staff will be affected, with the axe mainly falling on back office positions.

More than 200 people are employed in Southampton by BAA, which was taken over by Spanish company Ferrovial in June last year in a multi-billion-pound deal.

Any job cuts would come as a blow to the airport community, which is still reeling from the news that 130 jobs are to go when the Pratt and Whitney aircraft engineering facility closes in October.

A BAA spokeswoman said: "We do not recognise the figure of 2,000. BAA has been undertaking an efficiency review for several months, of which staff are well aware.

"The review does not involve security or customer services staff at our airports but covers back office functions.

"No conclusions have yet been reached and the review is ongoing."

She added: "BAA is not planning to sell any of its airports and has not decided on any number of job cuts."

The news emerged in the same month competition chiefs said they had received a number of complaints from airlines about the "poor quality of service and facilities" at BAA-run airports.

As well as Southampton BAA runs Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen airports.

More than 60 per cent of all UK air travellers passed through these airports in 2005.