3,000 jobs set to go as Honda warns it will close UK factory
HONDA is set to close its UK car factory, putting more than 3,000 jobs at risk.
The Japanese automobile giant, Britain’s fifth-biggest car maker, is preparing to shut the plant in Swindon in 2022.
The Wiltshire facility saw about 160,000 vehicles built last year, accounting for more than 10 per cent of Britain’s total car production.
The Swindon plant is its only factory in the EU.
Honda had already warned that a no-deal Brexit would cost it tens of millions of pounds in extra tariffs and damage its competitiveness, but appeared to signal its commitment to Swindon last autumn.
In September Ian Howells, the senior vice-president of Honda Europe, said the company remained “right behind” its production facility in Swindon and was not considering moving the plant out of the UK after Brexit.
He said: “The only place we produce the vehicle we produce at Swindon is in Swindon itself. So from that point of view it’s a very big decision to take a different approach.
“The logistics of moving a factory the size of Swindon would be huge, and as far as we’re concerned from a European perspective, and as far as our Japanese head office is concerned, we’re right behind supporting continued production at Swindon and, indeed, our whole European operation to continue there.”
The latest setback to Britain’s car industry follows Jaguar Land Rover’s confirmation last month of 4,500 job losses, while earlier this month Nissan scrapped plans to build its new sports utility vehicle in Sunderland.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders warned recently that the industry was on “red alert” for big job losses after the worst output for five years as firms cut back on investment amid Brexit uncertainty.
Christian Stadler, a car industry specialist at Warwick Business School, said: “Honda faces the same challenges as fellow Japanese car maker Nissan. The global economy is slowing down, which has hit key markets such as the US and China.
“The crackdown on diesel engines has also hit sales and will continue to do so as car manufacturers face fierce competition to bring a new generation of greener vehicles to market as quickly as possible.” Des Quinn, Unite union national officer for the automotive sector, said: “If these reports are confirmed, this would be a shattering body blow at the heart of UK manufacturing. The car industry in the UK over the past two decades has been the jewel in the crown for the manufacturing sector and now it has been brought low by the chaotic Brexit uncertainty.”
Despite the news, Honda is expected to retain its European headquarters in Bracknell, Berks.