Brexit Challenges From The German Car Manufacturer’s Point Of View
Thursday, 10. October 2019
We tend to hear a lot about the dangers of a no-deal Brexit from the perspective of UK business but how worried are European manufacturers of a no-deal Brexit? Are they as worried as our own manufacturers and what are the dangers being faced by the biggest car manufacturers, the Germans?
According to the Sunday Telegraph the quick answer is that they are petrified, especially the largest manufacturer in the world VW. Their factory in Wolfsburg, Germany employs a massive 50,000 workers. It runs three independent power stations and one corridor alone is over 1 mile long. Workers on the factory floor use bicycles to get about.
So having finally recovered from the Dieselgate scandal the last thing they need are the challenges of the loss of the free trade agreements that would follow a no-deal Brexit. Last month the German car manufacturers joined other European manufacturers who released a joint statement warning that a no-deal Brexit would have ‘seismic’ and ‘devastating’ consequences for the sector.
In another report produced earlier this year it was suggested that as many as 100,000 motor industry jobs would be at risk in the auto sector in Germany and that the European economy would suffer badly but that the UK economy would suffer even more. Concerns over the just-in-time supply chain of parts in both directions are of major concern, disrupting manufacturing both in the UK and in Europe in the event of a no-deal.
Having said this there is a strong belief that the onus is on the UK to come up with some proposals that would prevent Brexit. A view that isn’t shared by Boris and co. There seems a disconnect between the view of European inhabitants who talk highly of Britain and our trading partnership and their EU representatives.
Trades union leaders in Germany are concerned about the future of their members’ jobs. Only a Brexit deal will give them any level of comfort but they still support the EU-27 and support their position stating that they, in Europe, should remain united. By Graham Hill
