Mandelson wants “clarity” over Vauxhall

Posted on May 11th, 2009 by In51der in Manufacturers, News

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson says he wants ‘early clarity and decisions’ about the future of General Motors Europe amid growing concerns for the 5,000 staff employed in the UK by subsidiary Vauxhall.

Lord Mandelson met with German ministers last Thursday (May 7), who have already held talks with Fiat bosses on the possible acquisition by the Italian manufacturer of GM and its subsidiaries.

Earlier this week it was reported that German ministers had laid down many conditions on the future of Vauxhall sister company Opel in the event of a Fiat deal.

Lord Mandelson said: “Laying down exclusively German conditions for the company’s future is no more acceptable than saying exclusively British interests have to predominate.”

He continued: “The British Government will keep an open mind but workers at Vauxhall’s UK plants want to be reassured about their future.”

Fiat and Canadian parts manufacturer Magna International are said to be leading the battle to buy all or part of GM.

Concerns have also been raised by the Italian Government over possible Fiat plant closures if the manufacturer is successful in its negotiations. It is believed that Fiat is also keen on acquiring GM operations in South America and South Africa as well as across Europe.

Source: Autowired ¦ Daily Telegraph

Bookmark and Share

The Motor Trade Insider Guide To Buying New Cars

  • Vauxhall job cuts may not be as bad as first feared
    General Motors’ head of operations in Europe has suggested job losses at its two Vauxhall factories in the UK may [...]...
  • Mandelson hints at Vauxhall loans to sweeten GM Europe deal
    The UK is prepared to provide loans or loan guarantees to help push through the sale of Vauxhall, Business Secretary [...]...
  • Mandelson receives reassurance over future of Vauxhall
    Business Secretary Lord Mandelson says the US government has given a “positive response” to his case for continued General Motors [...]...
  • Mandelson meets Magna and German officials over Vauxhall future
    Business Secretary Lord Mandelson is having a series of meetings in the UK and Germany this week to discuss Vauxhall [...]...
  • Breakdown of talks brings concern over Vauxhall future
    Concerns about the future of Vauxhall’s two UK plants are growing after talks broke down in Germany over which firm [...]...
  • Mandelson predicts “painful change” for Vauxhall
    In an interview with the BBC Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said that there will be “painful change” resulting from the [...]...

    • Comments are closed.

    Automotive Industry News

    About MTI

    Motor Trade Insider
    Our aims:
    Build a bridge between consumers and the trade.

    Create Interesting and informative content.

    Break down barriers and create better understanding.

    Expose bad practices and rip-offs.

    Promote outstanding products and services.

    Motor Trade Insider is written by people working actively in the motor trade for people on the inside and people on the outside.

    Motor Trade Insider New Car Buying, Used Car Buying, Used Car Prices, Used Car Values UK. Car buying guide. Whether you’re buying a new car or interested in used cars or car valuation or just general information and advice on the motor trade and UK Automotive Industry.

    Valid CSS!

    Valid XHTML 1.0 Transitional

    [Valid RSS]

    Bargain of the Week

    Bargain of the Week – Land Rover Discovery

    Bargain of the Week – Land Rover Discovery

    With all the boxes ticked it does make you wonder how the British government think they can keep raising the cost of car ownership to ...

    Bargain of the Week – Ferrari 355

    Its V8 engine became the first road-going Ferrari to have bypass valves built into the exhaust system letting pretty much all of its thunder explode ...

    Bargain of the Week – 2003 Range Rover 3.0 Td6 HSE

    With the recent facelifted Range Rover and Sport doing wonders for sales, forking out for a 10-plate can set you back over 50 big ones ...

    Scrappage

    The scrappage scheme has ended, get over it

    The scrappage scheme has ended, get over it

    The continuous changes which the car trade is undergoing means that until staff get the message that customers demand (and deserve) great service and will ...

    What a difference a year makes

    Car buyers have therefore either gone elsewhere or decided on a demo model or nearly new example instead, thus leaving a vacuum in new car ...

    VAT’ll do nicely!

    We found that when embracing the scrappage scheme, for example, dealers made the absolute most out of it. Short term, after it ended, it did ...