More than 1,000 workers will be facing up to the threat of redundancy this Christmas after a drugs company announced a massive cost-saving drive.

Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis today announced plans to slash thousands of jobs worldwide in a bid to save around £800 million a year by 2010.

The firm, one of the world's biggest drugs makers, has a research and development centre in Wimblehurst Road, Horsham, where it employs 1,000 people.

Large scale redundancies at the site would be a severe blow for Horsham which has seen its other major employer, insurance group Royal & Sun Alliance, steadily reduce its headcount in the town over the last ten years, from around 3,000 to 890.

More than 270 jobs were shed in Horsham this year when US-based Applied Materials announced it was closing its under-performing factory in Foundry Lane.

Basel-based Novartis is following rivals in cutting its workforce as it looks to adapt to new sales methods worldwide. Although the company did not reveal details, it confirmed it was cutting 2,500 jobs worldwide over the next two years.

A spokeswoman said: "We are considering the implications for Novartis in the UK and Ireland. Novartis has a wide range of business operating in the UK and Ireland, which include research and development, commercial functions and manufacturing."

In line with rivals, Novartis is expected to cut its army of sales staff as it adapts to new marketing techniques. Over the past year, seven of the ten biggest pharmaceutical companies have announced more than 34,000 job cuts worldwide.

With a workforce of 100,000, Novartis said it hopes to manage a significant number of the cuts through natural turnover. However, the firm did not rule out redundancies.

Jeremy Taylor, chief executive of business lobby group CADIA, which represents companies in Sussex and Surrey, said: "Hopefully Novartis will recognise the skill level of the local people working in advanced manufacturing and we will not see to many job losses in Horsham. The Gatwick Diamond, including Horsham, is a great place to work and for businesses to grow and prosper."

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