Cameron: GM decision ‘fantastic vote of confidence’
PRIME Minister David Cameron welcomed today’s announcement by General Motors of an £125m investment in its Ellesmere Port plant, describing it as “a fantastic vote of confidence” in the country and the company’s workforce.
Speaking to a business audience at the Institute of Directors in Manchester, he praised the company’s decision to build the next generation of Astra cars at the plant from 2015, which has not only saved it from closure but will also lead to a further 700 jobs being created at the site.
“The UK government gave this its full backing, the unions supported the necessary changes, the workforce responded magnificently,” said Mr Cameron.
“It is truly a British success story.”
The Prime Minister also praised the efficiency of other car factories around the UK, stating that in the first quarter of 2012 the UK exported more vehicles than it imported for the first time since 1976.
“It is difficult to find a car making company that isn’t investing in its factory. Jaguar Land Rover actually can’t produce cars fast enough to sell into the Chinese market,” he said.
He argued that the sector stood as proof that the manufacturing sector in Britain remained competitive.
“I would say to manufacturers in the North West and elsewhere the government is behind you. We’re cutting business taxes, we’re investing in apprenticeships, we’re building the infrastructure you need…We want to help you to grow
“We need to do more to get behind manufacturing and re-balancing the economy.
“But the truth is this – when you have an economy that was so much based on a financial services boom, a housing boom, on uncontrolled migration and on government spending, it is hard and painstaking work to re-balance that model that couldn’t work anymore. We’ve now seen what a mirage that was.”
