UK considering tariffs on Chinese car imports
The business secretary is reportedly considering possible import levies on Chinese electric cars in an attempt to protect domestic auto manufacturers.
According to The Times on Monday, Jonathan Reynolds is working on a "package of potential tariffs" on Chinese-made vehicles following fears that Beijing is "dumping" state-subsidised cars onto the UK market.
EU ministers have called on Westminster to enforce the new charges amid concerns that Britain is becoming a corridor for Chinese manufacturers into the rest of the continent.
If it chooses not to deploy the new tariffs, however, the UK may be cut from the EU's "Made in Europe" scheme, according to The Times, which could lock British manufacturers out of European supply chains and make exporting to the EU less profitable.
Currently, the EU imposes tariffs of up to 45% on Chinese-made cars. However, the UK is heavily reliant on cars built in China to drive new registrations.
Chinese models accounted for roughly 20% of new car sales in the UK in September, according to the latest SMMT data, helped by increasingly popular brands like BYD, MG, Jaecoo, Chery, Omoda, Changan and Geely.