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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of projected job losses in the automotive industry in the North West of England in financial year 2020-21 as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.

We recognise the challenges facing the automotive industry as a result of Covid-19. Firms can draw upon our package of support, which is one of the most generous and comprehensive globally, with a fiscal response so far totalling £160 billion.

The Government has been working closely with key industry stakeholders throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, to understand how we can support the resilience and continued competitiveness of the UK’s automotive manufacturing sector at this time.

At the same time, we are continuing our long-standing programme of investment in the automotive sector. To date, the Government has invested £497 million through the Advanced Propulsion Centre’s innovation grants to develop the next generation of low carbon technologies, which have helped to secure or create?over 40,000 jobs?and have saved around 225 million tonnes of CO2.