5 March 2019 

Today, at the International Motor Show in Geneva, Peter Schwarzenbauer of BMW said that the company would “need to consider” moving production from the UK in the event of a no-deal Brexit outcome.

Schwarzenbauer, who is a Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, MINI, Rolls-Royce, and BMW Motorrad, stated that this move might be necessary because the company could not absorb the extra costs they would face. In recent weeks, various global carmakers have expressed concern about the risk of disruption to supply, increased border checks or delays at UK-EU borders, and the threat of extra tariffs if Britain leaves the EU without a deal.

BMW has four plants in the UK, with around 8,600 jobs, including a Rolls-Royce assembly unit in Goodwood in Sussex and an engine plant at Hams Hall in Birmingham. It also has a metal-pressing facility in Swindon. Around 4,500 jobs are based at BMW Cowley, where all the Minis sold and marketed in Europe are produced.

Anneliese Dodds, Labour and Co-operative MP for Oxford East and shadow chief financial secretary to the Treasury, says:

“The news today that Mini production in Cowley may be at risk if we leave the EU without a deal will be really difficult for many people in my constituency to hear. BMW Cowley employs over 4,000 people, and supports many other businesses in its wider supply chain, so any reduction in jobs or production would be a major blow to our city.

“I’ve repeatedly raised concerns about the impact of a ‘no deal’ Brexit and uncertainty over customs in particular, with Government Ministers and even with the Prime Minister.

“They really must now listen to what companies like BMW are telling them. We must keep those jobs in our city, where the Cowley plant has been enormously important for over sixty years”.

ENDS

Watch Anneliese speaking outside BMW Cowley in September 2018:

Notes:

*Comments from Peter Schwarzenbauer of BMW available here: https://news.sky.com/story/bmw-may-shift-mini-and-engine-work-from-uk-in-no-deal-brexit-11655739