By Alan Jones, Industrial Correspondent, PA News in Munich
German car giant BMW today responded to anger over its shock decision to sell
off Rover by agreeing to help minimise job losses, after a government
minister turned up for talks in a gleaming Rover 75.
Trade and Industry Secretary Stephen Byers stepped out of the dark blue
luxury car - production of which has been halved because of the Rover crisis
- for two hours of "positive" talks with BWM bosses at the company's head
office in Munich.
BMW is believed to have been stung by the reaction in the UK to its decision
a week ago to break up Rover, which has included calls for a boycott of the
German car.
Its chairman, Professor Joachim Milberg held a one-to-one meeting with Mr
Byers for an hour and immediately agreed to work with the task force which
the government has set up to help regenerate the West Midlands in the wake of
expected heavy job losses at the huge Longbridge factory in Birmingham.
There is still no official estimate of the likely redundancies but BMW today
described reports that up to 50,000 workers will be hit as a "dramatic over
estimate."
Mr Byers told PA News after his meeting that BMW was "very positive" about
wanting to help the task force and keep job losses to as few as possible.
"It was a very constructive meeting and BMW has agreed that we now need to
plan ahead and look to the future. They will do all they can to minimise job
losses and co-operate with the task force."
Mr Byers said he believed BMW was very close to reaching an agreement to sell
the Rover Research and Development centre at Gaydon in Warwickshire to
American rival Ford.
The site carries out work for the Landrover factory in Solihull, which Ford
is also buying, so there would be a "logic" to the deal.
Mr Byers said the two sides had agreed today that the past week had been
"very difficult" - especially for the Rover workforce - but he was keen to
move on with practical steps to help create new jobs.
Although unions have not given up hope of a new buyer being found to keep the
Rover group together, it now seems that the break up will go ahead, with
Longbridge being sold to venture capitalists Alchemy Partners.
Mr Byers, who was accompanied by the British Ambassador in Berlin, Sir Paul
Lever and the head of the task force Alex Stephenson, said he did not want to
"hark back" to the events of the past seven days.
"We have to look to the future - that is what the Government wants to do. We
want to engage in dialogue with BMW as the best way of helping communities
affected by this decision. I am hopeful that we can retrieve something from
this very difficult situation."
Mr Byers admitted there will be job losses but he accepts that BMW took a
commercial decision in the face of mounting losses at Rover.
The full extent of the losses will be revealed next week when BMW publishes
its annual figures, but industry analysts have suggested that the Rover
losses rose to £3 million a day before last week's decision to sell it.
Mr Stephenson will meet BMW and Rover officials in the next week to discuss
details of the support promised today, which could include cash as well as
part of the Longbridge site being handed over for regeneration.
The task force will report within the next few weeks on the scale of the
likely job losses at Longbridge and among suppliers as well as the chances of
attracting new investment.
"It has been a strong and positive outcome today and we now need to work on
the details," said Mr Stephenson, who will chair the next meeting of the task
force on Saturday.
BMW spokesman Axel Obermueller said no-one knew how many jobs would be lost
but it was "nowhere near" 50,000.
Sir Ken Jackson, general secretary of the Amalgamated Engineering and
Electrical Union, said he hoped the visit by Mr Byers would be followed by
positive moves from BMW to help regenerate the West Midlands.
"What we now need is for BMW, the unions and the government to sit down
together to map out a way forward and try to salvage something from the
wreckage."
Around 12 West Midlands MPs today vented their anger at BMW chiefs at a
private meeting in the Commons.
Afterwards, Birmingham Northfield MP Richard Burden said: "They were left in
no doubt about the real concern that people have got for the consequences of
the decision they have made.
"They faced some fairly hard questions about what led up to their decision to
sell Rover Group.
"They faced some fairly hard questions about whether they had marketed Rover
properly, particularly the Rover 75."
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