Like many of you, I was deeply concerned by the news that Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) are laying off a thousand workers from its plant in Lode Lane.
As a response to difficulties in the car industry, especially around the future of diesel cars, they have committed themselves to bringing over 350 full-time employees from Castle Bromwich whilst letting the contracts of agency workers lapse.
JLR is one of our town’s most important employers, and as one of Britain’s major manufacturers they have helped to establish Solihull’s reputation as an exporting down with a global reputation. This setback will have caused real uncertainty for local workers.
I will be keeping in close contact with JLR to make sure that local concerns are kept front and centre when decisions such as these are taken, and will also be meeting ministers to press the Government to offer practical, common-sense support – especially when it comes to regulating diesel cars, which reportedly make up 90 per cent of JLR’s output.
After the Volkswagen emissions scandal there was an understandable move to tighten up on high-polluting vehicles, but over-eager regulators seem to have forgotten that modern diesels are actually cleaner than ever. What Car? magazine even named one as its current Car of the Year, saying it combined the low CO2 diesels are known for with lower NOx output than many petrol alternatives.
I am proud to support motorists and manufacturers here in Parliament, both through lobbying ministers and my ongoing support for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Fairer Fuel. If you or somebody you know has been affected the news from JLR, please don’t hesitate to contact my office.
Outside the House of Commons, a real highlight of my week was this year’s Mayor’s Ball at the St John’s Hotel. It was lovely to join around 250 guests to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support – especially when the grand prize of the raffle was a beautiful sapphire!
My wife Philippa and I had a great place to sit, sharing a table with the mayor, Councillor Stuart Davis, his consort and daughter Sarah Walker, and a veritable ‘chain gang’ of mayors from across Warwickshire. We had a wonderful evening. It was a welcome reminder – if one were needed – of how lucky we are in Solihull to have such strong local institutions and charitable spirit.
Originally published in the Solihull News, 27/04/18.