U.K. Surpasses France in Auto Production

Last year the U.K. made more cars than France did 1.51 million units compared with 1.46 million units for the first time in decades, Reuters reports. The news service says the British industry is poised to soon surpass France in combined car and light van production as well.

Output has declined for both countries from peaks of 1.92 million units in England in 1972 and more than 3 million in France in 1994.

Reuters notes that both countries place high value on creating and maintaining jobs. But they are pursuing radically different policies to achieve those goals.

France defends jobs with policies that protect French control of companies in the country and exert strong pressure regarding corporate decisions about such matters as production and plant closures. The U.K.'s freer-market policy has led to the country's domestic auto industry being replaced by foreign-owned facilities.

France believes its policies provide a critical "safety belt" that creates stability without hampering growth. Reuters says the British government considers its approach more pragmatic and a better way to ensure the long-term competitiveness of its automotive sector, even though it concedes only about one-third of components used to make cars in the U.K. are produced locally.

Both countries believe government investment in new automotive technologies is important. But Reuters cites data indicating that last year England spent roughly one-third less on automotive R&D than France did.