JUST days after the Queen's visit to his Malmesbury factory, James Dyson has axed 118 of his 282 temporary workforce.

The jobs will go on the production line and in the moulding section at the factory in Tetbury Hill, Malmesbury.

Dyson spokesman, Victoria Savill, said the temporary workforce had been employed at Dyson for one month or more, and were working flexible shifts.

She blamed the job losses on the strength of the pound, but said sales of Dyson vacuum cleaners and washing machines remain strong in Europe.

"Like any business, Dyson uses temporary workers to give us flexibility," said Ms Savill. "Demand fluctuates and to be a competitive manufacturer we have to react to market conditions."

She said Dyson would continue to employ temporary workers when needed.

All cylinder vacuum cleaner production is moving to Dyson's manufacturing facility in Malaysia, where vacuum cleaners have been manufactured for Australia and the Far East for over a year.

But Ms Savill said the cutbacks were not related to this move.

"Nearly 60 per cent of all vacuum cleaners bought in the UK are uprights and we continue to produce thousands of machines every day in Malmesbury."

The news comes six weeks after Malmesbury's other major employer, Lucent Technologies, announced that it is to close its factory and relocate to Swindon, as part of a bid to cut 500 jobs across the country.