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Car Manufacturing

If there is a silver lining in this story, it is that these brands will now be central to the goals of the companies that own them, rather than being a niche element in a major company. I happened to go to Aston Martin yesterday for the unveiling of its new concept car, the V12 Vantage RS, and the opening of its design studio—obviously, someone has to go. Some might think that the company has lost its way, but it has a greater sense of direction and greater passion than it has ever had before. Indeed, we have spoken about environmental issues, and the company's new design studio uses 80 per cent. less energy than a typical building and it was built more cheaply. These companies are leading the world not only in the design of their motor cars, but in the way in which they develop them. We should not be shy about celebrating success. One challenge is that we should be able say, ““You can be green and have fun.”” We should not say that we all have to move away from specialist cars simply because of environmental issues—we must keep the issue in proportion. We should celebrate the fact that Aston Martin is apparently this country's coolest brand. Most of us do not know a huge amount about being cool, but I think that we would agree that Aston Martin is our coolest brand—indeed, it was this year's luxury car of the year globally. The company has created 1,800 jobs since 2000, with another 2,000 to 3,000 jobs being created among its suppliers. As the company's chairman, Dr. Ulrich Bez, said last night, the company has been given a future, based on its core values of engineering and design. There are other areas of specialist engineering in which this country is leading the world. Ricardo, an engineering company that started in Shoreham, but which now works globally, has a fantastic record, with 70 per cent. of its work taking place outside the UK. As has been mentioned, we are also global leaders in motor sport development, but perhaps that should be the subject of a further debate, given the lack of Government support that the sector receives. The contribution made by the mass-production car companies has rightly been recognised in the debate. Tributes have been paid to Nissan, Honda and Toyota, and mention has been made of the massive success of the Mini, which has brought so much joy to people across the country. That success has been possible because of the commitment that such companies and their parents have shown to investing in research and development. Ford has put £800 million into R and D in the UK and employs 9,500 people in its three technical centres. As has been mentioned, it has invested £1 billion in green technologies, most of which will be delivered through companies and centres in the UK. As has been rightly said, however, there are concerns, including about skills. We are not producing enough graduates with the skills that the automotive business requires to prosper in this country. Ricardo has had to open a technical base in the Czech Republic to identify graduates with the skills base that it needs. We should tie into that a general concern about the status of engineering. Too many people who study engineering end up being thought of as technicians—people who will come and mend the boiler when it goes wrong—rather than as people with an extremely important degree.