BELEAGUERED supermarket chain Morrisons is to axe 2,600 jobs, including around 260 in Scotland, as a result of radical changes to its management structure.

The Bradford-based supermarket, which employs 126,000, told staff yesterday it was starting a 45-day consultation process over plans to remove two tiers of management in its stores to cut costs and help fund price cuts.

Earlier this month, Morrisons reported a 7.1% slump in quarterly sales on the back of annual losses of £176m, a performance which prompted chief executive Dalton Philips to waive his bonus.

Philips wants the changes that currently mean some stores have seven tiers between the shop floor and the store manager.

While the move will lead to 2,600 redundancies, Morrisons, which has 63 of its 569 UK stores in Scotland, said this year will also see it create 1,000 jobs in its M local convenience stores and an additional 3,000 in new supermarkets.

l The supermarket has also been forced to stop playing England World Cup songs at its Scottish stores after complaints from customers. Songs included on the playlist included Three Lions by comedians Frank Skinner and David Baddiel.