Mitie axes 480

Struggling outsourcing giant Mitie is losing 480 jobs as part of a fightback plan.

The group, under pressure after a string of recent profit warnings, said the jobs are set to go from its 153,000-strong workforce by the end of March.

Acting chief executive Peter Dickinson claimed Mitie was making “steady progress”.

But the firm revealed it now expects costs of a swingeing savings programme to be around £24million in the current year – up from the £15m previous estimate.

It comes just weeks after the Financial Conduct Authority launched an investigation into Mitie relating to a 2016 profit warning.