BMW to invest £500 million in UK MINI production

David Cameron welcomes BMW's £500 million investment in the UK

What’s going on? Two days on the trot we get good news about the UK economy.

Yesterday we reported that Nissan are to invest £192 million to design and build the next generation Qashqai in the UK, and today comes confirmation from BMW that they will be spending £500 million over the next three years in the UK as they gear up for the next generation MINI.

In truth, no one is surprised that Nissan and BMW are remaining in the UK; their investment here is already enormous (BMW alone has invested £1.5 billion in the UK in the last decade) and they have no reason to walk away.

After the misery of the 1970s, when we were the sick man of Europe in terms of manufacturing and workforce, the UK now has great industrial relations and is a reliable and predictable economy in which to invest.

Just like yesterday with Carlos Ghosn, our leader (call me Dave) got in on the action outside Number 10 to bask in the good news and gain a few brownie points.

David Cameron said:

I welcome this major investment by BMW Group in UK manufacturing. The production and export of iconic British cars like the MINI is making a real contribution to the rebalancing of the economy that this government is determined to achieve. It’s a tremendous vote of confidence in the skills and capabilities of the company’s British workforce and in the future of UK manufacturing. The MINI plant in Oxford has been one of our great manufacturing success stories, they should be hugely proud of their achievements. They have shown once again that the UK is a major player in the global automotive industry.

Which might be over-egging the pudding a bit, but at least we do still have a car industry that continues to manufacture in the UK.

Even if none of it is UK owned.

By Cars UK