Major contractor Carillion has today gone into compulsory liquidation, putting thousands of jobs at risk.

Last ditch efforts to prevent the collapse of Carillion over the weekend failed, despite intervention from the Cabinet Office.

In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, Carillion Chairman Philip Green said: "This is a very sad day for Carillion, for our colleagues, suppliers and customers that we have been proud to serve over many years.

"In recent days however we have been unable to secure the funding to support our business plan and it is therefore with the deepest regret that we have arrived at this decision. We understand that HM government will be providing the necessary funding required by the Official Receiver to maintain the public services carried on by Carillion staff, subcontractors and suppliers."

The multi-disciplinary construction company currently employs 20,000 staff in the UK. 

The firm is understood to have public sector or public/private partnership contracts worth £1.7 billion, including across NHS hospitals and rail programme HS2.

Carillion is also one of the UK's largest facilities managers. Contracts it held included responsibility for the management of heating and cooling systems across a number of estates. These services are delivered through "a mix of mobile and dedicated on-site engineers," according to the company.