hartmut wrote:Honda decided to close Swindon, Nissan partly retreats from Sunderland, Vauxhall (now part of PSA) is literally dead, and BMW expresses concerns about future production in UK. Same does Ford.
These are big players clearly outnumbering Rover-Jaguar, meanwhile owned by TATA from India.
Indeed, the amazing recovery of British car industry was up to now, mainly driven by foreign investors, and by their inclination to get access to world biggest single market, which is at present EU.
Regarding "alternative transport policies", I can not see any advantage for UK by leaving.
Because the basic technology for that will also be driven by globalization and sizes of markets.
And because the drive of a car, whether electric or by combustion engine, loosed its leading role for added value already.
To make things short: UK is at risk to loose a important part of its industry.
The metaphor "unicorn" posted from snapdragon, could easily be the epitaph on the gravestone of a great history performed by British car makers.
If you demand links an sources for that assessment, please let me know.
Nonsense-
None of what you say invalidates what I stated in my post.
In fact, just by retreating from the U.K, for the spurious reason of Brexit, is in no beneficial to those manufacturers quitting the U.K.
What is happening in the auto industry in this country has been a feature of that industry since the 1950's, in the main, because of poor,outdated management,lack of investment in innovation & an inability to effect global sales of British goods or services.
Foreign investors are attracted to this country by corporate tax incentives that affect the return on capital as much as by potential markets, for which British consumers really ought to be more discriminating in where their purchases are sourced from in future.
As I say, what is going on in the auto production area in this country, is & will affect many other countries too.
Those changes in demand for products that are 'greener', or friendly to the planet,is global by nature, those countries which have recently heavily invested in traditional internal combustion - engined vehicles, will lose market share, as well as profits in which to repay capital borrowings, to countries like the U.K that can counter such changes by investing in EV's, along with new battery technology.
Keeping ahead of the trend is important, as long as change is beneficial, real & qualitative.
By so doing, this country can build cars for the future,but, for which a new transport system is even more important for the future than what currently drives demand for cars.
Important changes are already taking place with electric vehicles, not just cars, but also with public transport,electronics is at the heart of those changes, but so too will materials for building lighter, more efficient & recyclable products.
Transport is economically important for any modern country, private ownership, although the preferred option, is slowly being encroached upon .
I see inter-city commuting being done on motorways that have been converted to other modes of travel, so too where those motorway exit roads will have different transport that commuters for instance, can hire to travel from those exit roads - nearby towns or villages without bearing the cost of traditional ownership of the means to travel or commute.
Our societies are always in flux, never static, sometimes change is slow, other times it's sudden & transforming.
I see no reason to fear change, I have seen, as well as have been subject to so much of it in my lifetime, that's why I see optimism in that change which Brexit begs to happen.