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Boris Johnson’s gamble on a Christmas election has paid off, as the Conservative Party secured a majority of almost 80 seats, leaving Labour far behind.
Might there finally be an injection of stability following years of political wrangling resulting from the Brexit referendum? The UK now has a Government with a mandate to govern for a full term of five years and a political majority with the power to get policy approved in the House of Commons.
The list of policy changes Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party is promising is long, and begins today with the negotiation of post-Brexit trade deals. However, to muddy the Conservative victory, is a fermenting issue surrounding the unity of the United Kingdom especially the burgeoning force of the Scottish National Party (SNP). In Scotland, the SNP are very strong, conversely their influence in Westminster has disappeared resulting from the Conservative majority. Additionally, in neighbourhoods across the UK unity needs to develop at some level for co-existence to develop once more between leavers and remainers.
The implications of the General Election results for the automotive sector in general.
This morning, the stock and money markets responded positively to the election results. The main reason being that a no deal Brexit risk remains, but is now very unlikely. With this majority government in place, there is more chance of securing some form of regulatory alignment with the EU. Significantly, this means that the likelihood of the UK adopting World Trade Organisation (WTO) tariffs is very low removing the potential of significant price increases across the automotive sector.
The new Government has already spoken of building stability for business through both its social and economic policies, a “one-nation approach” reflecting diversity and inclusion within the automotive sector. With this goal, the priority for UK automotive is restore business and economic confidence and to enable the continued journey on the Road to Zero driving the growth in sales of ultra-low emission vehicles and changes to our mobility selections.
The UK automotive sector drives growth here and in the rest of the world. This Conservative Government needs to maintain our global competitiveness whilst delivering an ambitious deal with the EU to maintain free and frictionless trade.