The Government has been accused of failing the UK automotive sector after not delivering funding to battery firm Britishvolt to create a 3,000-job gigafactory in Northumberland.
Labour’s Shadow Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds visited the battery start-up’s site at Cambois, near Blyth, after a week in which the company narrowly averted going into administration. Britishvolt is aiming to build a £3.8bn factory to make batteries for electric vehicles, with the project crucial both to the local area and the future of the country’s automotive industry as it transitions towards making electric cars.
Britishvolt has been hampered by a lack of investment, with the latest blow being a Government refusal to forward £30m of a £100m grant promised to the firm first announced in January. The company’s short-term future has been safeguarded after it secured some funding earlier this week, but longer term questions over the project remain.
