By ADAM POGRUND, REPORTER Published: 19:33 BST, 25 September 2025 | Updated: 20:11 BST, 25 September 2025
Labour ministers are considering stepping in to help keep Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) suppliers trading after a major cyber-attack shut down its manufacturing plants and delivery systems.The attack, which is estimated to have cost the business almost £2billion in lost revenue, came as Britain's biggest carmaker was still finalising insurance cover and has left its suppliers facing collapse.It means JLR faces shouldering the full bill from the crisis which has seen production production paused until October 1 at the earliest.Despite appeals for support, the Government is not expected to launch a Covid-style furlough scheme for the suppliers.It comes after warnings from unions and politicians that some small suppliers, which produce parts for the car giant, could collapse without urgent financial support. Around 1,000 vehicles a day usually roll off its production lines in the West Midlands and Merseyside but JLR paused production at the end of August after being targeted by hackers.Its engine manufacturing site in Wolverhampton has also been paused.Earlier this week, JLR extended its pause in production until next month as it continues to tackle the impact of the shutdown. Jaguar Land Rover was not insured against the cyber attack that shut down production and left its suppliers facing collapse, it has been revealed (File image)But it is feared it could last until November, depriving it of £3.5bn in revenue and £250million of profit. But the company, one of the biggest names in British manufacturing, will not be able to recover those losses because of the lack of insurance. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he is 'really concerned' about the impact on JLR and the businesses in its supply chain, with the Department for Business working around the clock on the issue.The Government is now considering buying component parts typically used by JLR from their suppliers in order to keep them trading until production restarts at the car giant. Another option being considering would involve Government-backed loans for suppliers, while it could also purchase and stockpile car parts.Unions have called on ministers to introduce a Covid-style furlough scheme for workers at affected suppliers, but government officials are likely to rule this out because of the significant costs involved.Graham Morgan, the council leader for Knowsley, where the Merseyside site is based, said many of the firms which supply JLR were under 'huge financial pressure'.'If one of those companies falls down, even when Jaguar Land Rover returns to production they can't make cars if parts of the cog [are] missing,' he said. He added that it is 'important' that 'some kind of furlough scheme was put in place' until production restarts.MPs on the Government's Business Select Committee were set to meet JLR suppliers late on Thursday and relay their discussions to ministers. Speaking to ITV Central on Thursday, Sir Keir said: 'I'm really concerned for JLR but I'm equally concerned about the other businesses that feed into JLR and the impact it's having on them.'The Department of Business is working 24/7 with those businesses to see what we can do.'The plant produces models such as the Range Rover Evoque and the Land Rover Discovery Sport (pictured: workers on the assembly line)The chairman of the Business and Trade Committee, Liam Byrne, has written to the Chancellor with a series of questions on the measures available to urgently support suppliers.Marks and Spencer, the Co-op and Harrods have also been targeted by hackers this year. The attacks shut down M&S's website and affected day-to-day Co-op stores, while Harrods said its systems had been accessed. Jaguar Land Rover recently reported that its quarterly profits had almost halved after the US slapped higher import tariffs on cars coming from the UK.The rates have since been cut from 27.5 per cent to 10 per cent on the first 100,000 British-built cars to ship to the US.Jaguar is also gearing up for a significant shift in both style and substance after it unveiled a divise rebrand and concept car that critics claimed erased its century-old heritage of British engineering.Last month, it appointed 54-year-old Tata Motors chief financial officer PB Balaji as the new boss after chief executive Adrian Mardell stepped down after three years at the helm.
