Production on Nimrod has cost an extra �500m

BAE Systems has reached an agreement with the Government to temporarily halt production of the Nimrod aircraft at its Woodford plant, near Stockport.

The move is likely to have implications on jobs, but it is not yet known how many will be affected.

The firm has a contract to build 18 of the planes for the Ministry of Defence.

Production is expected to restart when agreements on design, development and pricing have been reached.

The Nimrod contract is one of two to be changed - the other is the Astute attack submarine, which is produced in Cumbria.

BAE's agreement with the Government involves delaying further production of the Nimrod until the performance of the first three aircraft in this current order is demonstrated.

The project's funding has also been increased by about �270m.