The head of Vauxhall has said that the future of their Ellesmere Port plant is hanging in the balance due to uncertainty over Brexit.
Carlos Tavares, chief executive at PSA, which owns Vauxhall indicated that clarity over the terms of Brexit were needed in order to make a decision about the future of the plant.
“We cannot invest in a world of uncertainty,” he said.
“No one is going to make huge investments without knowing what will be the final competitiveness of the Brexit outcome.”
Speaking at the Geneva Motor Show, Mr Tavares said the decision as to whether or not to give the Ellesmere Port plant more work would need to be taken ‘very soon’.
A spokesperson for the government’s Business Department said: “The Business Secretary has met with Vauxhall’s senior management team on a number of occasions to understand their plans for their Ellesmere Port plant.
“The government is continuing to engage with PSA on their future strategic plans for the UK. ”
The general secretary of the Unite union, Len McCluskey, said: “Of course, the government position on Brexit is creating uncertainty for major manufacturing companies but this should not be used by Mr Tavares to raise the fear of closure of Ellesmere Port.
“The UK market is vitally important to Peugeot and if he wants to protect that market share he should openly commit to new models in both Ellesmere Port and Luton.
“Our Vauxhall plants are among the most productive in the PSA family, and the products our members make are among the most popular vehicles in the country.”
The plant has already seen staff numbers slashed. In October 2017, 400 members of staff were cut via voluntary redundancy. In January it was announced that a further 250 redundancies would be made.