The UK government has pledged £35 million to support the huge expansion programme of Jaguar Land Rover operations in Coventry.

New Prime Minister Theresa May is eager to back the Whitley South expansion scheme because it offers great potential in creating thousands of added value manufacturing jobs.

The government investment was announced earlier in the week after the Prime Minister’s Chequers summit, although the sum is less than many organisations were hoping for.

The investment will be spent on road infrastructure to support the development of the new 60 acre project which adjoins Jaguar Land Rover’s Whitley office.

The £550 million plans focus on a major expansion of the car manufacturing firm’s research and development facilities along with a new campus development which will cover Jaguar Land Rover’s existing site alongside part of the 60 acre site, which is found just south of Whitley.

Councils and business leaders in the area have already backed the proposals and show more evidence of how important the car industry’s growth is to the UK economy.

It is expected that Jaguar Land Rover will take half of the 60 acre site with the rest of the site designated for tier one suppliers to the manufacturer.

The Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership had hoped to secure a £40 million investment from the government to support the improvements to infrastructure, which will include a new bridge across the A45 to link both sides.

The latest is in addition to, and follows on from, the £10 million government funding for road improvements in the Whitley area that resulted in Jaguar Land Rover announcing £300 million expansion plans last year.

The plans are a key part of the Midlands Engine and are seen as a test of the government’s commitment to the vision of the region becoming the manufacturing powerhouse of the UK.

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