SHARES in the company carrying out the work on Poole Bridge have plunged.

The financial issue with Interserve follows reports that the outsourcing giant has been placed under Government watch amid fears for its financial health following the collapse of Carillion.

The group, which has revenues of around £3 billion and employs 80,000 staff worldwide, was down more than 10% in morning trading on the London Stock Exchange.

Neil Wilson, ETX Capital's senior market analyst, said: "Interserve has had its problems for sure, but it's no Carillion.

"Its latest update showed improvement and the news will do no good for sentiment given there may be some twitchiness among investors in the sector following Carillion's collapse.

"The FT report suggests that Interserve is being monitored by the Government. While one official says ministers are 'very worried', another said there is 'no comparison' with Carillion.

"Mixed messages but hardly likely to engender confidence and we note a fairly volatile open for the stock with IRV trading down more than 8% at send time."

Interserve began working on the bridge refurbishment in September 2016 and the reopening is now weeks behind schedule after numerous problems.

It has been put back eight times.

Interserve’s construction division made a £2m loss in the first six months of 2017, prompting a shift towards projects with an average value of less than £10m.

The problems with the contract have caused significant damage to the reputation of Borough of Poole.