Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has held with representatives of the automotive manufacturing sector on trends in the annual levels of car production; and if he will make a statement.

Leaving the EU with a deal that supports the future of British industry remains the government’s top priority. We are determined to ensure that the UK continues to be one of the most competitive locations in the world for automotive. Through our Industrial Strategy and landmark Automotive Sector Deal, we are working with industry to put the UK at the forefront of new automotive technologies to ensure the UK remains the destination of choice for future investment decisions.

BEIS Ministers and officials regularly meet with the automotive industry, including through bilaterals with manufacturers, via interactions with the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), and through BEIS’s participation in the Automotive Council.

The UK automotive industry is one of our great success stories. Global demand for UK designed, engineered and manufactured vehicles is strong and the industry has one of the highest productivity levels in Europe. A number of companies have recently committed to investing billions of pounds in the sector. This includes recent announcements of a £50m Technology Centre in partnership between McLaren and University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), as well as Aston Martin’s announcement that its St Athan facility in Wales will become the home of its electric vehicle range.