Ford to close Jaguar plant

MORE than 2,000 manufacturing jobs are to go in the Midlands following Ford‘s decision to close its Jaguar car plant at Browns Lane in Allesley, Coventry.

The move, which had been widely expected, reflects growing over-capacity in the automotive industry.

Jaguar said the decision was taken due to poor sales. Last month it put three of its UK factories on short-time working and said it was cutting production by around 10%.

In a separate move, Jaguar revealed that it will quit Formula 1 at the end of the season. The company's racing team came back into Formula 1 in 2000 but has never done better than 7th place in the Constructors' Championship and has never started a race from pole position.

Business leaders in the West Midlands, meanwhile, said the closure was potentially disastrous and could cost the regional economy more than £50m a year.

Louise Beard, chief executive of Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said that as well as 2,000 job losses it would spell the demise of a world-renowned brand long associated with the city.

She said: 'A great deal of smaller firms in this area rely on Jaguar for trade. With 2,000 people made redundant, the loss of wealth from the economy would devastating and could be anything over and above £50m annually.'

As well as Browns Lane, Jaguar also has a research and development facility in the Whitley area of Coventry, employing about 2,000 people.

Coventry has long been at the heart of UK car manufacturing – the first car maker set up in the city in 1896 and as early as 1911 there were 7,000 car workers in Coventry.

Browns Lane is the home of the XJ saloon and XK sports car. Production of the cars is likely to switch to the nearby Castle Bromwich site in Birmingham, which makes the S-Type.

TGWU general secretary Tony Woodley and Amicus general secretary Derek Simpson, who held talks with Jaguar today, argued that Ford, which owns Jaguar, would be breaking agreements about the future of the plant if the closure went ahead.

The union leaders said an agreement in 1998 stated that Browns Lane would be the assembly site for large luxury saloons and sport cars. The agreement, signed by unions and the company gave a commitment about the development of Jaguar's West Midlands sites as well as future investment.

The unions could now launch a ballot for industrial action. Local Labour MPs, including Geoffrey Robinson, a former managing director of Jaguar, have urged the company to keep the factory open.

As well as Jaguar, Ford also owns Land Rover and Aston Martin. Ford is expected to counter any bad news in Coventry with an announcement of a big investment in its factory at Dagenham in Essex.

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