Union leaders are due to meet the prime minister today to discuss the escalating threat to the British car industry.
The meeting with Tony Blair comes amid the crisis at Rover Longbridge and threats to Ford plants at Dagenham and Halewood. Worries about Honda and Nissan production will also be discussed.
BMW does not expect any alternative offers for Rover and believes Alchemy’s is the best solution. Unions accused it of seeking to block an alternative bid. Blair denied in the Commons that trade and industry secretary Stephen Byers was told before Christmas that BMW might have to reconsider its investment in Britain. However, he hinted that Byers’s long-term future in his current job had been damaged by his handling of the crisis. BMW has admitted it held talks to sell Rover to four major car companies before clinching a deal with Alchemy. Rover’s sale could be delayed by up to a month while BMW completes the disposal of Land Rover to Ford.
Financial Times 30/03/00 page 2
The Daily Telegraph 30/03/00 page 10, page 14, page 35, page 42
The Times 30/03/00 page 8, page 14, page 28, page 29 (Commentary)
The Independent 30/03/00 page 2, page 21 (Outlook), page 5 (Review)
The Guardian 30/03/00 page 22
