Car trouble

A report by the Business and Enterprise Committee has attacked the government for its failure to deliver adequate support to the UK’s troubled automotive industry.

The study said that it was ‘profoundly disappointed’ by the delays to the Automotive Assistance Programme (AAP), which had been launched in February to aid crisis-hit car manufacturers.

According to the report, the £2.3bn scheme has yet to pay out any money in support of the car industry, fuelling concerns that the UK could risk losing its car industry skills and jobs to other countries.

The group of cross-party MPs said they were ‘astounded’ that Jaguar Land Rover, which announced 300 job cuts on Wednesday 16 July, had yet to receive the government’s loan guarantee needed to unlock the £340m loan approved by the European Investment Bank.

Peter Luff, the committee’s chairman, said: ‘The UK car industry has a large and diverse supply chain. But that supply chain is at great risk.