1,000 jobs for Halewood as Range Rover unveils Evoque and signs up Posh

JAGUAR Land Rover (JLR) has reaffirmed its commitment to produce a “baby” Range Rover at Halewood, creating 1,000 jobs in Merseyside.

The company, owned by the Indian conglomerate Tata, unveiled the car – called the Evoque – for the first time at a high profile event in London last night.

Victoria Beckham, who attended the launch, was named as a creative design executive at Range Rover and will work on a special edition of the car.

The party, held to mark the 40th anniversary of the Range Rover, offered a first glimpse of a production version of the group’s LRX concept car that will be the smallest and most fuel efficient Range Rover model.

The vehicle, which will be available with either four-wheel or two-wheel drive, will make a public debut at the Paris Motor Show in September and go on sale in 160 countries from next summer. It is expected to be priced between £30,000 and £45,000.

Phil Popham, managing director of Land Rover, said: “The all-new Range Rover Evoque will be built at our multi-award winning plant in Halewood, creating 1,000 new jobs in the Merseyside area, a fantastic boost to the UK economy. The Halewood plant has a reputation for excellence and quality and is recognised throughout the industry as a leader in lean manufacturing.”

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Management at Halewood, which employs 2,000 people, were first told the plant would handle the new model in September. It came as a relief at the factory where 300 jobs were lost last year in response to the global downturn. Production of the X-Type Jaguar was due to end in 2009, leaving the plant with one model – the Land Rover Freelander.

In 2008-09 global car sales slumped by 30% and JLR saw production fall by more than 100,000 vehicles. The picture has since brightenend for the company with figures for the year to the end of March showing a 31% increase in sales to £13.6bn. Profits came in at £378m, compared with losses of £310m the year before.

* What do you think of the Evoque? Will it be a success for JLR?