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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Government's Industrial Strategy, what plans the Government has to support the UK automotive industry in the ambition set out in the that strategy to secure the UK’s position as a world leader in shaping the future of mobility.

The Government has a long-standing programme of support to maintain the competitiveness of the UK automotive sector. Through our Industrial Strategy and landmark Automotive Sector Deal, we are placing the UK at the forefront of new automotive technology development.

Government and industry have pledged joint commitment of £1 billion over 10 years to 2023 for the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) with three APC competitions running this year. Government has committed £246m to the Faraday Battery Challenge including £80m for the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre to scale up new technologies. And in the last Budget, Government committed up to £80m for research and development of electric motor technology. The Sector Deal also includes £32 million of joint funding for an industry-led supply chain competitiveness programme to help grow the UK supply chain and assure international competitiveness.

In May 2018, as part of the Future of Mobility Grand Challenge, my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced our intention for the UK to be at the forefront of the design and manufacturing of zero emission vehicles and in July we published Road to Zero to deliver on that commitment. As well as the technology investment, we have committed £1.5bn for consumer incentives, charging infrastructure and R&D to support the transition to zero emission vehicles.

We are determined to ensure that the UK continues to be one of the most competitive locations in the world for future automotive investment, alongside other advanced manufacturing.