MORE than 100 businesses in the region are in crisis after the collapse of MG Rover, it has been revealed.

Eligible firms will, for the next 30 days, be handed a £50-an-employee daily lifeline to help them through.

The Chamber of Commerce Herefordshire and Worcestershire said it has been inundated with calls from companies and that the economic situation was now severe.

The chamber has set up a list of those affected but has refused to give details to the Worcester News.

What it did say, though, was that for many companies the contracts they had with MG Rover accounted for at least 10 to 15 per cent of their total trade.

This could put jobs at risk and mean possible closure for some.

To help them out in the short-term, the chamber will use taxpayers' cash to throw eligible firms a lifeline of £50 an employee a day for the next 30 days.

Christopher Harvey, policy and lobbying executive at the chamber, said: "We are doing all we can to support the businesses affected by the Rover situation.

"Since the last crisis there has been a huge amount of work done by chambers to help the businesses in the Rover supply chain to diversify, but the impact on the economy of the region is still severe.

"More than 100 companies have been identified and spoken to and appear to have at least 10 per cent to 15 per cent of their business dependent on Rover.

"The chamber will now be visiting all of these businesses in the course of the coming week to evaluate the impact in some detail and, if the dependency is as it appears, to help them get an application submitted for support."

As well as offering £50 an employee a day to help subsidise labour costs, firms are also being offered the service of business advisers.

"These will be able to go into the business free of charge for a number of days to make a detailed assessment and to advise the company on its options for the future," added Mr Harvey.

The Worcester News contacted dealers StartinRover, of Ombersley Road, Worcester, and Phoenix MG Rover, Kidderminster, to see how the collapse had affected them. Both declined to comment.