A special Jaguar Land Rover Development Partnership is to be convened in response to the company’s announcement about the loss of 4,500 jobs as part of its ongoing restructure.
The partnership has been convened by the government and the first meeting on Monday will be headed by Business Secretary Greg Clark.
Joining him will be politicians and business leaders from the Midlands and North West, together with representatives from JLR’s supply chain, trade bodies and trades unions.
In a statement, Mr Clark said: “Jaguar Land Rover have confirmed plans to offer voluntary redundancy packages to their UK workforce as they reduce their global headcount. This is a commercial decision for the company but nevertheless it will clearly be a worrying time for Jaguar Land Rover employees and their families.
“The Government has, and will continue, to work closely with the business to ensure that it can succeed long into the future as it invests and transitions to autonomous, connected and electric vehicles.
“On Monday, Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands Combined Authority, and I will convene a Jaguar Land Rover Development Partnership meeting bringing together Jaguar Land Rover leadership, local MPs and representatives from the Midlands and the North West, supply chain, trade body and trades union representatives.
“Jaguar Land Rover and its owners have made clear they remain firmly committed to the UK, continuing to invest billions and employing tens of thousands of people. This includes investment in next generation electric drive units to be produced in Wolverhampton and a new battery assembly centre in Hams Hall.”
JLR said it had taken the action in order to protect long-term growth in the face of challenges such as a decline in Chinese sales, Brexit uncertainty and a growing reluctance by buyers to purchase diesel-engined cars.
Mr Street said he was confident JLR would be a critical part of the West Midlands’ future economic success and hailed the new investments pledged by the company for Wolverhampton’s engine manufacturing centre and the battery centre at Hams Hall.