JLR reassures No 10 about its commitment to UK and its workforce

Bosses at car maker Jaguar Land Rover have written to Prime Minister Theresa May assuring her of their commitment to its UK business.

The luxury car group directly employs around 13,000 staff in its West Midlands plants, and around 4,000 at its Halewood plant in Merseyside.

JLR’S message to 10 Downing Street follows a turbulent trading period for the group, and the continued uncertainty over the UK’s Brexit negotiations.

The group reported a £90m loss in the third quarter of 2018, largely due to a significant decline in sales across China, and a fall in sales of saloon and diesel models.

That followed half-year losses of £354m between March and September, compared with profits of £953m for the same period in 2017.

It has also cut around 1,000 agency staff at its plants, including nearly 200 at Halewood, and put 2,000 workers at its Castle Bromwich site in the West Midlands on a three-day week.

The group is set to embark on a £2.5bn restructuring plan, which will reportedly include the loss of up to 5,000 jobs from its total UK workforce of 40,000.

JLR chief executive Dr Ralf Speth has repeatedly warned about the impact a ‘hard Brexit’ could have on the group’s supply chains and sales.

However, Natarajan Chandrasekaran, chairman of Indian owner Tata Motors and Jaguar Land Rover, has issued a statement in response to speculative stories about the future of the car maker, saying: “I would like to clarify that we remain committed to the long-term growth and success of JLR.”

He added: “JLR will continue to face global headwinds being experienced by the auto industry and, to address them, the management is taking the right steps to drive operational excellence, whilst continuing to invest in innovative products and technology to stay competitive globally.”

He insisted: “There is no truth to the rumours that Tata Motors is looking to divest our stake in JLR or discontinue the Jaguar brand.”

He added that he had “great belief in the potential” of both JLR’s products and engineering, concluding: “I am confident that these inherent strengths, coupled with the focused efforts by the management to drive performance in the medium term by improving its operational leverage, will help JLR deliver consistent, competitive and cash accretive growth in the coming years.”

Sources have claimed that the letter is designed to reassure the Government about JLR’s long-term commitment to the UK as it seeks government support for electric and driverless technology, and for building a battery factory in the Midlands.

Close