Browns Lane Jaguar revival plan rejected

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A plan to return car manufacturing to Jaguar’s historic Browns Lane plant and create jobs was among Coventry bids rejected for government funding.


Brendan OíToole (CPP), John Mutton and Linda Bigham (Coventry City Council), Steve Holland (AWM)

CPP Global Holding Ltd’s bid to the government’s Regional Growth Fund (RGF) was left out of successful bids announced on Monday by deputy prime minister Nick Clegg.

No other Coventry bids were successful in round two of the £1.4billion fund.

It comes after at least nine bids from Coventry and Warwickshire firms were rejected in the first round of funding in April, when only Jaguar Land Rover was successful.

As we reported yesterday, two Warwickshire bids were included in Mr Clegg’s £100million of public investment in the West Midlands region – designed to pump-prime private sector funding and jobs.

But Coventry City Council leader John Mutton yesterday accused the government of deliberately ignoring the city – where one in nine is unemployed.

Labour councillor Mutton – a member of the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership which endorsed six rejected bids - said: “I’m really disappointed. I’m beginning to ask if the government has a downer on Coventry for political reasons.

“The bid to return car manufacturing to Browns Lane would have helped create 1000 skilled jobs in manufacturing to steer wealth creation in our country. It’s crazy.”

It is not yet known how many other private bids not endorsed by the LEP from Coventry firms were turned down.

Coventry-based CPP Global Holdings said it will continue with plans to bring low volume specialist vehicle production and assembly to Browns Lane.

Chief executive Brendan O’Toole said: “While we are disappointed by this decision, it does not halt our plans to move to Browns Lane and we have a very solid business case for the project.

“It might alter the time frame but we had always worked with two scenarios depending on this decision.

"We also recognise and appreciate the support given to the bid locally and regionally, and will continue to work with government, Coventry City Council and other parties with the objective of creating new jobs for Coventry, and to ensure we are in a position to bid successfully for any further rounds of funding which might arise.”