Royal & Sun Alliance, the UK general insurer, said yesterday it would shed 1,550 jobs across the world as part of a cost-cutting plan aimed at saving £130m a year. 1,000 jobs will be lost in the UK, whilst another 550 will be lost in international locations. The move, which drove its shares sharply higher, supplements a radical restructuring started three-and-a-half years ago when RSA's repeated failure to meet improvement targets had left its reputation in tatters. The general insurer also announced ambitious growth targets alongside the cost cuts and stressed its attention was turning to expansion as the bulk of its restructuring had been completed. Andy Haste, group Chief Executive, said: 'The decision to reduce headcount is always a difficult one but [is] necessary to ensure we remain as competitive as possible.' A spokesman for UK trade union Amicus said the union was disappointed at the number of jobs being cut and would work with the firm to try and reduce the number of compulsory redundancies.