Honda has said that it currently has no plans to leave the UK after assurances from the British government that it will shield the car manufacturing industry following Brexit.
The comments, made by Honda’s executive vice president Seiji Kuraishi, come after business secretary Greg Clark announced on Sunday that the government will work to protect carmakers.
Mr Kuraishi said that Honda wants to continue its business in the UK “for now”, and added that a formal decision on behalf of the company would be made at a later date.
Government promises to shield car industry
Nissan was the first company to announce its plan to stay in the UK, after the government made specific promises that it would seek tariff-free access to the EU market post-Brexit.
However, Mr Kuraishi didn’t say whether Honda had received the same specific promises, and only said that the company’s communication with the government had “improved significantly”.
Honda had previously began scaling back its operations in the UK, but last year announced that its factory in Swindon would be where it will build and export its upcoming Civic hatchback.
2017 Civic hatchback to be built in UK
Meanwhile, Mr Clark said on the BBC’s The Andrew Marr Show over the weekend that: “The automotive sector is one of our great strengths. We want to see the whole industry prosper.”
The four promises made by the government to car makers included extra funding for training and electric car research, a promise to increase the use of British companies in the manufacturers’ supply chains and the promise to seek free access to the EU.
It remains to be seen whether or not the government will be able to gain tariff-free access to the EU after Brexit, but EU countries like France have strongly stated that would not be an option.
Formal decision to be made at a later date
Labour ministers also called for the government to release the full specifics of its promises to car manufacturers, with shadow business secretary Clive Lewis stating it was hard to believe Nissan was convinced “on good intentions alone”.
