Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government, in view of  the 12 per cent fall in vehicle manufacturing in the United Kingdom between 2023 and 2024, what plans they have to support that industry.

Our automotive industry directly supports over 150,000 jobs and contributes £19.4 billion to the economy - it is a growth sector. Production did dip last year, due in part to weaker global demand, but also because factories are retooling to build Electric Vehicles - so, we remain confident in the sector.

That is why the Budget included a £2 billion commitment to build on previous innovation programmes that have leveraged over £6bn of investment from the private sector. Just last month, this government, Nissan and JATCO (a component manufacturer) secured a £50 million deal to establish JATCO's first European manufacturing site in Sunderland.