UK probably needs large new factory to meet target of 1.3m cars a year, say industry boss

Mike Hawes casts doubt on Labour’s plan to double production by 2035, as Starmer visits China with carmaker delegation

A target of building 1.3m cars a year is likely to be missed unless a large new UK factory is built in the coming years, an industry group has said, as Keir Starmer prepares to hold trade talks in China.

Labour aims to have 1.3m vehicles rolling off production lines by 2035, a central ambition of its industrial strategy. That would nearly double the 764,715 cars and vans made in 2025, according to new data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

UK vehicle production slumped 15.5% in 2025 compared with the previous year, hitting its lowest point since 1952 apart from during Covid-19 lockdowns.

Chinese manufacturers are seen as the most likely to build new electric vehicle assembly plants in the UK.