The world-famous MINI factory in Oxford will shut for a month immediately after Brexit, the brand’s owners, BMW, confirmed on Tuesday.
The German carmaker told workers it plans to halt production at the site throughout April next year, just days after the UK leaves the EU on 29 March 2019.
A BMW source told HuffPost UK that works due to take place include changes to the factory’s paint shop and preparations for the production of a new electric MINI.
“Planned annual maintenance periods at BMW Group production sites allow essential updating and equipment replacement to be completed over several weeks, while there is no production taking place,” the firm said in a statement.
“As a responsible organisation, we have scheduled next year’s annual maintenance period at MINI Plant Oxford to start on 1 April, when the UK exits the EU, to minimise the risk of any possible short-term parts-supply disruption in the event of a no deal Brexit. While we believe this worst case scenario is an unlikely outcome, we have to plan for it.
“We remain committed to our operations in Britain, which is the only country in the world where we manufacture for all three of our automotive brands.”
Yesterday, bosses at Jaguar Land Rover told staff at its Castle Bromwich factory they will drop down to a three-day working week until Christmas.
The firm has claimed it is struggling as a result of Brexit and a fall in demand for diesel models.