LONDON, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Securing a Brexit deal to protect Britain's biggest exporter must be next prime minister's top priority, said Britain's Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) on Tuesday.
Responding to the question about the top agenda of the next Tory leader and PM of the UK, Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, told Xinhua that "getting a deal to deliver Brexit" should be the PM's number one priority on taking office.
"We don't want to leave the EU with no deal. There needs to be a deal," he said.
"Secondly, create the right business trading conditions that will allow and encourage domestic investment which is effectively stalled at the moment," Hawes added, "we really want to see that reversed."
"Thirdly, create the right conditions to help the industry change towards these new technologies, which means infrastructure, incentives and a package of measures that help retrain the workforce into different skill sets," he continued.
After the Brexit with a deal, Hawes also stressed that the next PM should secure a system which allows the UK to pursue new global trading deals, including the future deal with China, and safeguards the ones that the UK has through the EU.
According to SMMT's 2019 UK Automotive Trade Report released the same day, hard Brexit border delays would potentially cost UK automotive manufacturers up to 50,000 pounds (63,617 U.S. dollars) a minute, while the right deal, the right business environment and auto-friendly trade strategy could deliver 20 billion pounds boost as industry maximizes potential.
Highlighting the importance of the trading powerhouse, the report pointed out, automotive is the UK's single biggest exporter of goods, trading with some 160 countries and regions worldwide, and accounting for more than 14 percent of its total exports. The sector directly employs 168,000 people and delivers an annual 18.6 billion pounds to the public purse.
Brexit was the dominant topic throughout the agenda of the industry's annual International Automotive Summit in London on Tuesday. (1 pound = 1.27 U.S. dollars)
