Britain is in crisis - this week its government appeals to everyone to take the pain of the nation's budget deficit cuts and for organizations and commerce to where possible, create jobs and employ some of those who will be made redundant as a result of the massive cuts in government spending.

So what's been the response of the National Police Improvement Agency NPIA?

Answer:
To create huge savings in its budget yesterday the NPIA have authorized a short list of approved vehicle manufacturers that can only supply the UK's police forces. This list falls into three categories: Standard, High-Performance and Specialist vehicles. Of the 7 manufacturers in the first two categories (Standard + High-Performance) only 2 build in the UK. They are Ford and Vauxhall.

The clear policy of UKGov and the NPIA is therefore to export jobs and manufacturing output to France (Peugeot), Korea (Hyundai), Germany (Audi + BMW - Mini is not an approved vehicle), Sweden/China (Volvo).

In the last category (Specialist) of the 3 chosen manufacturers only 1 builds in the UK - Jaguar, the others build in Italy (Iveco) and Germany (VW).

And before some of you start ranting again that I'm being racist - it is not a racist post - it is a post about the economics of the fiscal mad house that's called the UK Coalition Government and its civil branch of law and order.

I'd really like to know what was wrong with offerings from those other companies that build and employ thousands in the motor manufacturing & supply industry in the UK: Land Rover, Nissan, Toyota, Honda, Jaguar (High-Performance), etc..

This is a barking mad unproductive recession inducing policy.

Before we know it they'll be scraping our aircraft carriers for 2 new ones and not order any planes for them

This countries been over by Brown & Blair Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

The country may (or may not) have been knackered by some B&B outfit, but we must deal with the present, and present policy makers (UKGov & NPIA) have just undertaken this regressive economic action that does not create employment, does not help reduce debt, and does nothing to stimulate local economies in regions where employment levels are very low indeed.

Instead it exports jobs, investment, tax revenues, and confidence.

Expect no more from the British Government (Labour anyway) They don't seem to like British manufacturing etc.

We have new High Speed Trains here in Kent - not built in our great railway heartland, NO - In Japan

I attended passionately the Save MG Rover rallies in Birmingham back in 2005, what did the local Police turn up in Peugeot's & Renault's.
Go to France, Italy, Germany etc what do the Government, Police etc drive = Their own products

Where was P&O's new Queen Elizabeth built? NOT IN This Country  (Past) Freelander 2 HSE 2010 MY In Rimini Red.
(Past) RR Evoque Dynamic Lux Si4 In Firenze Red.
(Past) RR Evouque Pure Tech in Barollo Black with bespoke Firenze Red colour coding.
(Present) Freelander Metropolis 2015 MY In Santorini Black with Ivory Premium Leather.

EV
Whilst I have empathy with what you say in your post I should emphasis that my first post was not intended to be political, merely a statement of what occurred this past week. As I wrote in reply to Mr Pinks, we must deal with the present.

However you have raised some interesting comparisons, some of which require redress:

UK Train Building:
This was virtually eliminated by the action of a Conservative government under the leadership of Margret Thatcher. I will not go into precise detail here (far too much Parliamentary "White Paper" reference data available) but it began with that government's withdrawal of funding for the ongoing development of the APT and the curtailing of train transport related R&D at the Derby Railway Technical Centre. This action, plus the desire to privatize British Railways led to BR being unable to place orders with indigenous rolling stock manufacturers for new fleets of all types of train sets. The following John Major cabinet felt compelled to pursue political doctrine in the face of overwhelming economic evidence from around the world (still today there is no national private passenger railway making profit on this planet - the Germans laughed, the French sniggered, the Dutch privatized and then quickly re nationalized, the Swiss were horrified, and the Japanese simply waited for their opportunity to arise and every national passenger rail operator globally remain Government undertakings ) but Major went ahead with the breakup of BR into private franchised services that required (and still do) huge direct and indirect state subsidy to remain in operation. And yesterday it was announced that the government has allowed UK train operators to raise their fares by 3% above inflation for the next 3yrs.

P&O
You are quite right, however the circumstances are not of a political nature but one of pure greed. Competitive bids and funding support were procured in support of a UK contract to build that vessel. This fell on the shoulders of the Chairman of P&O, the very same chap who two months ago was taken to task as to why (quiet legally as his fleet operates in international waters) they, P&O, were paying their Philippino crews on its Cross Channel fleet wage rates 75% less per week than european crew members, and at levels below the minimum working wage as set by the individual EU nations where his fleet docks. He is the shameful ugly unacceptable face of capitalism.