British Steel plans to axe hundreds of jobs in plans to close its coke ovens in Scunthorpe and will "optimise" several hundred more, a union source has said.The Chinese-owned manufacturing company was said to be cutting 300 jobs from the coke ovens, with another 600 to 900 being "optimised". It was unclear what this optimisation would mean.It comes as ministers are considering a multimillion-pound rescue package for the struggling business.

British Steel plans to axe hundreds of jobs in plans to close its coke ovens in Scunthorpe and will "optimise" several hundred more, a union source has said.The Chinese-owned manufacturing company was said to be cutting 300 jobs from the coke ovens, with another 600 to 900 being "optimised". It was unclear what this optimisation would mean.It comes as ministers are considering a multimillion-pound rescue package for the struggling business.