The British government department responsible for the UK’s departure from the EU has been conducting a round of fact-finding interviews and dialogues with UK automotive manufacturers ahead of negotiations to take the UK out of the EU.
A spokeswoman for the Department for Exiting the European Union told just-auto that the department ‘s junior UK Brexit minister David Jones and others have been on a lengthy round of meetings across the country with representatives of different industries to establish sector concerns and priorities.
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“This has been about engagement and fact-finding, listening to people, establishing where sector concerns and priorities are – and automotive has been an important part of that,” she said.
She also said that the meetings are private and a normal part of government business to consult widely and establish where industrial concerns lie ahead of important negotiations to take the UK out of the EU.
Reuters has reported that VW-owned luxury brand Bentley had discussions with David Jones late last year, connected with Brexit and its future investment plans for the UK.
The government department told the news agency that it was not in the public interest to release further details.
“Part of the negotiation and exit process requires the UK to be able to effectively pursue and protect our interests abroad. Prematurely publicising information will prejudice our ability to successfully conduct that business,” it said.
The Department for Exiting the European Union told Reuters that releasing any commercially sensitive information could make firms reluctant to speak to the UK government in the future and harm its ability to secure a good deal.
“The potential lack of this key exchange of ideas, or the release of the information, may in turn weaken the government’s position in these negotiations and make it harder for the UK to secure the best possible deal with the EU,” the department told Reuters.
The position of car makers with production facilities in the UK and who export in large numbers to EU states is a politically sensitive matter as the UK negotiates its way out of the EU and seeks to conclude a tariff-free trade deal. The EU has said that it wants progress on the terms of the UK’s exit on matters such as EU Budget liabilities ahead of talks on future trade arrangements. The timetable for the UK’s exit, as things stand, sees a formal exit from the trade bloc by March 31, 2019. UK negotiators are expected to pitch for transitional arrangements on trade arrangements if no deal is in place by then.
