The number of cars built in Britain dropped 29.3 percent in 2020 to a level last seen back in 1984.
A total of 920,928 vehicles rolled off the production lines, a figure the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders described as “the worst in a generation”.
The numbers mirror a 29 percent fall in UK car sales while registrations in Europe declined 23.7 percent.
The coronavirus pandemic “slammed the brakes on the sector” with car manufacturing severely disrupted throughout the year due to lockdowns and social distancing measures.
Export demand was also depressed, again due to Covid-19, with exports to the EU down 30.8 percent and US exports falling 33.7 percent.
Brexit uncertainty was an added factor, added the SMMT, due to a deal not being reached until Christmas Eve.
Despite the lower numbers, more than 8 in 10 cars built in Britain last year were still exported, with the EU taking a 53.5 percent share of them, underlining the importance of a tariff-free trade deal.
‘Devastating’
The impact of the pandemic on UK car production has been “devastating”, said SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes, “with Covid lockdowns depressing demand, shuttering plants and threatening lives and livelihoods”.
Around 10,000 jobs have already been lost in the industry as a result and this is “just the tip of the iceberg”.
The outlook for 2021 is more positive, with car production forecast to rise back up to the 1 million mark – but much of this depends on the speed of rolling out Covid measures and reopening car showrooms.
Nissan was Britain’s biggest car producer in 2020, taking over the title from Jaguar Land Rover, with Mini in third and Toyota in fourth.
Production tumbled 47.8 percent at Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port plant, with just over 61,000 Astra rolling off the line.
Bosses await a decision on the factory’s future with a decision expected within the next few weeks.
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