Nissan begins production of new electric car in Sunderland

Nissan’s Sunderland site is Britain’s biggest car factory, with 6,000 employees and the theoretical ability to make 600,000 cars a year. Photograph: Richard Saker/The Guardian

Nissan has started the production of its latest electric car in Sunderland, a crucial step in the UK automotive industry’s transition away from petrol and diesel.

The Japanese manufacturer will launch the third generation of the Leaf on Tuesday, which was the first mass-market battery electric car to be built in the UK. Nissan has made 282,704 Leaf models at the north-east England plant so far.