British jobs 'must be safeguarded' in BAE-EADS merger Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, Gerald Howarth, who left the government in this month's reshuffle, warns that the planned deal raises "huge strategic issues" - including Britain's relationship with the US and with the European Union. Above all, skilled British jobs must not be sacrificed because of "political machinations on the continent," he warns. Mr Howarth warns that the picture could be complicated by a US company proposing its own merger with BAES, risking a repeat of the Westland helicopter crisis which imperilled Margaret Thatcher's premiership in the mid 1980s. Howarth has been nominated for a knighthood - BBC calling him Sir Gerald...not sure what our style is*