Unions are meeting with potential bidders for Ford’s Jaguar and Land Rover brands today in a bid to gain support from ministers and workers.

The two headlining bids come from Tata, the Indian manufacturer and OneEquity, a conglomerate group led by former Ford chief executive, Jacques Nasser.

Unions are rumoured to prefer the bid from OneEquity due to the market positioning and possible outsourcing of work if Tata wins the bid. However, the unions have not publicly stated a preference.

Ford is expected to choose a winning bid next month.

Unions have already stated if a sale does go through they want Ford’s engine and component plants in Britain to continue to supply Jaguar and Land Rover for several years to come.