The car-making giants’ board member Peter Schwarzenbauer fears the “danger” of leaving the EU without a deal could lead to the closure of BMW’s Mini plant in Cowley, Oxford, which employs 4,500 people. A possible hike in costs by 10 per cent after a no-deal Brexut would be hard to absorb, he claimed. His warning is the latest blow to Britain's car-making industry, with Honda planing to close its Swindon plant and Nissan axing production of its X-Trail SUV in Sunderland.
Production of the iconic Mini cars could be moved from Britain to EU post-Brexit, boss warns (Image: Getty )
This week, Didier Leroy, chairman of Toyota’s European operations, added to industry fears, claiming a no-deal Brexit would be “terrible” for this company.
Almost 10,000 people work at Toyota and BMW's Mini UK sites, with fears of a no-deal Brexit growing among carmaking chiefs.
Mr Schwarzenbauer told Sky News: “If this was to come, which is the worst-case scenario … we would need to consider what it actually means for us in the long run.
“For Mini this is really a danger no doubt about it.”
Around 4,500 workers are employed by BMW at its Mini plant in Cowley, Oxford (Image: Getty )
If this was to come, which is the worst-case scenario … we would need to consider what it actually means for us in the long run. For Mini this is really a danger no doubt about i
BMW board member
