“Another difficult month for UK vehicle production as the impact of the earlier cyber-attack continued to be felt. Growth is on the horizon, however, and Government has recognized the automotive industry as a pillar of national strategic importance, backing it with an industrial strategy and additional £1.5 billion to drive manufacturing competitiveness. Investment competitiveness also depends on a healthy domestic market, however, notably for EVs, and introducing a new electric Vehicle Excise Duty is the wrong measure at the wrong time. This new tax will undermine demand, so government must work with industry to reduce the cost of compliance and protect the UK’s investment appeal,” said Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive.