The development would affect staff in Sussex and Wiltshire.

But there are fears the move could be repeated at other centres if it proves a success.

Newsquest has operations from Glasgow to Southampton and from Cardiff to Basildon. There are 17 dailies and almost 300 weeklies.

Its pre-press staff design adverts and check pages before printing but, if the move is rubber-stamped, these roles would be outsourced to Express KCS – an American firm with sites in India.

In Sussex, where The Argus is printed, 31 pre-press staff – 22 full-time and nine part-timers – would be cut to the equivalent of ten full-time positions.

Meanwhile, in Wiltshire around 13 jobs are expected to go at titles including the Swindon Advertiser.

In Worcestershire, the company has been experimenting with sending the pages abroad but so far there have been no redundancies.

Management is currently engaged in a four-week consultation process with staff and union representatives.

Steve Sibbald, national officer for newspapers from the union Unite, which represents the staff, believes if the move goes ahead and is successful Newsquest will roll it out UK-wide.

He said: "That's what really concerns us. I cannot imagine that, if it's successful and it's more profitable, they will not do it at any other sites.

"Our regional officials will be representing our members at the various sites."

Martin Hodges, regional official for Unite, added: "While we have no issues with work being done in India as such, the big problem is that it's being done on a profit before people basis.

"Our big concern is that it's a local product sold for local people. Jobs would have gone to local people and now that's not going to happen. The workforce is very upset about it.

"These are skilled people but they are going to have to take a different profession altogether."

Newsquest declined to make any comment on this story.