No-deal Brexit could add to cost of car production
A NO-deal Brexit could result in “stop-start production” for weeks or months at Toyota’s UK car plant at a cost of millions of pounds, an executive at the Japanese motor giant has warned.
Tony Walker, deputy managing director of Toyota Europe, made the comments at a House of Commons Business Select Committee meeting.
Toyota’s Derbyshire factory at Burnaston exports the majority of the cars it makes to mainland Europe and it is soon to start building a new model, the Corolla.
But Mr Walker told the committee that UK consumers could pay a “significant” price for any deviation from EU standards and regulations following Brexit.
He said: “If we go out of line with the EU in the future, some areas wouldn’t be so expensive but some would be very costly.
“If we were to have different emissions regulations, the cost would be huge and that would be passed on to the market – so the UK consumer would pay for the additional R&D (research and development) costs.”
Mr Walker also warned that a nodeal Brexit could seriously impact production at Burnaston.
He said: “We run integrated justin-time European supply chains, we have 50 trucks a day coming through the (Channel) Tunnel, we carry just four hours of parts at the plant and collect the parts in sequence to the build.
“We have to have not just 50 trucks a day but we have to have them in sequence. It’s no good if we have 49 and truck 17 is missing. We would then stop.
“Without the Withdrawal Agreement, leaving the EU with no deal, we would have stop-start production for weeks, possibly months. It would be very, very difficult for us to cope with.
“The value of the cars we make is £10 million a day. If you lose that value, it’s very challenging for us.”
Mr Walker said Toyota “absolutely” welcomed Theresa May’s Withdrawal Agreement, largely because it provides a 21-month transition period during which companies can prepare for new arrangements.
Sydney Nash, senior policy manager at the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), said Brexit uncertainty was a factor behind a 50% drop in automotive investment in the UK over the last year and an expected 115,000 reduction in vehicles produced next year.
Moving to World Trade Organisation (WTO) tariffs under a no-deal would add around £4.5 billion to the cost of imports and exports, Mr Nash said.