Honda’s closure? It’s down to government failure to champion electric cars | Rosie Rogers

Workers in UK plants like Swindon should be at the forefront of the global shift to building cleaner vehicles

Honda’s announcement that it is closing its Swindon car plant has brought with it a very human tragedy, with thousands of job losses expected, and many more throughout the supply chain. As the rancorous debate about the role that Brexit played lingers, what might be drowned out is that, in an era of climate emergency, these are the workers whose skills and know-how we so desperately need.

Transport emissions remains the UK’s biggest source of greenhouse gases. Unlike other polluting sectors, like energy, which have seen significant drops in emissions, our transport emissions have only dropped 2% since 1990. If we’re to tackle climate change we desperately need to deal with this. And a big part of solution is electric cars.

Related: Carmakers quitting Britain won’t blame Brexit – it’s not in their interest | Phillip Inman

Related: Honda’s exit is based on many factors, but Brexit is certainly one | Larry Elliott

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