From rugged mountains to city streets, Land Rovers are a well-known sight the world over. However for many years, lots of these iconic autos bore the title of Solihull, the West Midlands city that has lengthy been central to the UK’s automobile manufacturing heritage.
Now, Jaguar Land Rover’s flagship Solihull plant, which employs greater than 9,000 employees, finds itself on the centre of a world commerce dispute after US President Donald Trump imposed a 25% tariff on UK automobile exports to the US.
The announcement — made on what Trump branded “Liberation Day” — varieties a part of a sweeping spherical of tariffs hitting 60 international locations. For Solihull, the implications could possibly be far-reaching.
“I’m appalled. It will kill Jaguar Land Rover here in the town,” stated Robert Mills, 70, a former automotive guide. “There could potentially be job losses because JLR export enormously to America. The knock-on effect is going to be enormous.”
The West Midlands was as soon as synonymous with Britain’s industrial may, significantly in automotive manufacturing. Mills recollects a time when the area was criss-crossed with provide chains and part factories.
“When I left school, you couldn’t go around the West Midlands without stumbling across either the supply chain or a manufacturing plant,” he stated. Now, he fears the world might endure a second wave of business decline.
Mills believes Trump’s technique relies on a misplaced confidence that the US can merely re-establish its personal automobile half manufacturing.
“Trump may think he can manufacture all the parts again in America. But I’ve seen the closed factories around Detroit. They’re not there. It’s all gone.”
Regardless of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s latest efforts to strengthen diplomatic ties — together with providing Trump a second state go to — the US has gone forward with broad tariffs, imposing a blanket 10% obligation on all UK items, however a considerably greater 25% charge particularly on UK-made vehicles. This contrasts with 20% tariffs on the EU, 34% on China, and a steep 46% on Vietnam.
“Negotiation. Try and reason with an unreasonable man,” Mills provided as recommendation for the federal government — although different locals are sceptical that Trump’s place may be swayed.
“I don’t think anyone’s going to be able to persuade him either way,” stated Lynda Rhea, 75, who watched Canada’s extra defiant stance towards the US president unfold in latest weeks.
“The Canadians stood up to him a bit, didn’t they? Is it a good thing to stand up to him? Or is it best to just sit back and wait?”
Her husband, Tony Rhea, 77, who spent his profession as {an electrical} mechanical engineer at JLR, sees the broader image.
“Everyone is affected. Right down to the cafe where they eat, the people who wash their overalls, and even the people that maintain the robots — that’s all local.”
The sudden nature of the tariffs has added to the nervousness within the city.
“This has come out of the blue,” stated Thomas Newman, 86. “If we had five or 10 years then we could have probably planned better, but it’s immediate.”
Whereas he disagrees with the tariffs, Newman does perceive the home political enchantment for the US president.
“I can understand his concern for the American public, but I think it’s going to cause a lot of problems in the stock market and in employment around the world.”
The broader context for Britain’s carmakers is already difficult. In 2024, UK automobile manufacturing fell to its lowest degree in 70 years, excluding the pandemic interval, as a result of a mix of weak demand and the worldwide shift towards electrical autos. In the meantime, China now instructions 76% of the worldwide EV market, with lower-priced autos making it more and more troublesome for UK companies to compete.
Newman believes the UK authorities should do extra to assist home automotive companies within the face of each worldwide tariffs and stiff world competitors.
“We’ve got to give concessions to the UK automotive industry to make it more attractive than the American industry. Chinese electric vehicles can be bought for half the price. We’ve got to be making something that the rest of the world really wants.”
As Solihull grapples with the fallout from Trump’s tariff announcement, the temper is one in all concern however not resignation. For a city the place the automobile business nonetheless defines livelihoods, the hope is that clear coverage and robust negotiation can defend its financial future — earlier than the engine stops working altogether.
