Bush unveils $17.4bn car bail-out

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The US government will provide $17.4bn (£11.6bn) in loans to the troubled US car industry.

President George W Bush said allowing the US car industry to fail would not be "a responsible course of action".

Carmakers will get $13.4bn in short-term financing from the $700bn Wall Street bail-out, and another $4bn will be provided later.

The government set a deadline of 31 March for the firms to become viable, officials said.

A $14bn (£9.4bn) rescue failed in the Senate last week, raising fears of job cuts and a possible industry collapse.

All car firms have announced production cuts as the economic slowdown has slashed car sales.

Chrysler, Ford and GM have repeatedly warned that millions of jobs could be lost if the government does not agree to a package of loans to support the industry.