BMW chief threatens to pull Mini out of UK
MINIS may no longer be built in Britain in the event of a No Deal Brexit, BMW warned yesterday.
The German car giant said No Deal could force it to shift production from its plant in Oxford to the Netherlands. BMW board member Peter Schwarzenbauer, who is responsible for Mini and Rolls-Royce, said extra tariffs and customs checks would create a ‘huge burden for the Mini brand’.
Speaking to Sky News at the Geneva motor show, he said Rolls-Royce – another BMW-owned brand – would remain in the UK.
But he could not give similar guarantees for Mini’s Cowley plant, which employs around
,500 staff and produces more than 200,000 Minis every year.
He said of a No Deal Brexit: ‘If this would come, which is the worst case scenario, we’d need to consider what it means for us in the long run. For Mini this is a real danger.’ Mr Schwarzenbauer also said the company, which employs 8,000 people in the UK, was considering moving some engine production from Hams Hall in Warwickshire to a plant in Austria.
Toyota has also warned that a No Deal Brexit would make their UK production ‘extremely complicated’, and last night it was reported that Nissan was considering plans to cut back production at its Sunderland plant.
Eurostar played down warnings that No Deal could lead to mile-long queues at London’s St Pancras International.
Chief executive Mike Cooper told BBC Radio ’s Today programme that a leaked Department for Transport report predicting No Deal chaos for Eurostar passengers was ‘misleading’.
He added the firm is ‘clearly hoping for the best but we are planning for all eventualities’ and said there is no plan to adjust timetables.