{"text":[[{"start":10.8,"text":"Toyota and Jaguar Land Rover have warned that “Made in Europe” manufacturing targets threaten investment and jobs, making cars produced in Europe even more expensive than Chinese vehicles."}],[{"start":22.5,"text":"Under current EU proposals, cars for corporate fleets and small electric vehicles would have to be assembled within the bloc to be eligible for public procurement and subsidies. That has sparked an outcry from global carmakers that export their vehicles to Europe from countries such as the UK, Turkey and Morocco. "}],[{"start":40.35,"text":"Under the so-called Industrial Accelerator Act, the EU is also proposing a 70 per cent local content threshold for car components, excluding batteries, if they are to qualify for subsidies or public contracts."}],[{"start":54.45,"text":"JLR, which is owned by India’s Tata Motors, said the proposals would add costs to manufacturers who would have to provide evidence for where they source their components. "}],[{"start":65.15,"text":"For other carmakers as well, executives have said it would be difficult to compile customs documents to verify the origin of components for smaller suppliers."}],[{"start":74.5,"text":"“The IAA layers incremental costs on to manufacturers and would make European cars more expensive,” JLR said. “It does nothing to address the underlying structural differences that make European manufacturing less competitive than China.”"}],[{"start":88.65,"text":"At an Automotive News event in Brussels on Wednesday, Yoshihiro Nakata, who heads Toyota’s European operations, cautioned that excluding key international partners from the “Made in Europe” rules could “undermine future investment, employment and technology transfer”. "}],[{"start":105,"text":"The world’s largest carmaker, which has eight plants in Europe and the UK with 25,000 people employed in the region, has called for vehicles made in Japan, the UK and Turkey to qualify for the IAA subsidies. "}],[{"start":119.2,"text":"“Europe’s resilience is built not only on local production, but also on working with partners to create regional scale and shared success. By working together we are all stronger,” Nakata said. "}],[{"start":130.7,"text":"JLR has also called for the EU to look at how much a manufacturer was contributing to the economies — in the form of EU exports for example — instead of looking simply at where the vehicles are assembled. "}],[{"start":143.04999999999998,"text":"It warned that leaving the UK out of the framework would have serious consequences across the industry: “Replacing the UK content with EU content could destabilise the UK automotive supply chain, as well as the EU supply chain because of the codependency.”"}],[{"start":158.04999999999998,"text":"Nissan, one of the UK’s biggest automotive employers, earlier indicated that it would shut its flagship Sunderland factory were the policy to take effect. "}],[{"start":168.39999999999998,"text":"Destroying jobs is precisely the opposite of Brussels’ intentions with the IAA, which was proposed by French commissioner Stéphane Séjourné in March, to reverse the bloc’s industrial decline."}],[{"start":180.79999999999998,"text":"The legislation aims to increase manufacturing’s share of the EU economy from 14.3 per cent in 2024 to 20 per cent by 2035. The proposal already allows for manufacturers in other cleantech sectors, based in countries with which the EU has free trade deals, to benefit from “Made in Europe” status."}],[{"start":201.24999999999997,"text":"There are signs that member states and parliamentarians will seek to modify the legislation to include UK-based car manufacturing."}],[{"start":210.29999999999998,"text":"France’s trade minister Nicolas Forissier told the FT two weeks ago that Brussels needed to solve “the problem” of the UK’s exclusion from the scheme, while a commission official acknowledged that member states including Germany were also leaning towards inclusion of the UK. "}],[{"start":226.54999999999998,"text":"One senior MEP familiar with the negotiations said the European parliament may also review the geographic scope of the proposal to fully include the UK."}],[{"start":236.95,"text":"However, the current proposal does have the backing of other carmakers such as Volkswagen and Stellantis, as well as many car parts manufacturers."}],[{"start":246.14999999999998,"text":"Benjamin Krieger, secretary-general of parts body Clepa, said it supported extending the scheme to the UK and other free-trade partners but would resist any watering down of requirements for 70 per cent of vehicles to be made in Europe."}],[{"start":260.65,"text":"“We need to stop the bleeding,” he said, adding: “If you import everything, the vehicles would be cheaper, of course, but we sacrifice production in Europe.”"}],[{"start":270.15,"text":"The European Commission said that proposals relating to corporate fleets and small electric vehicles were “key initiatives in support of our green transition” and that those objectives were only achievable if they “also translate into growth and manufacturing activity” in the EU supply chain."}],[{"start":293.84999999999997,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1781160752_2582.mp3"}