BMW, which manufactures the iconic Mini and Rolls Royce cars, on Friday called on the British government to declare its preferred position on trade and customs with the European Union once it leaves the bloc.

The German carmaker's special representative in the UK, Ian Robertson, said the company needed clarity by the end of the summer.

"If we don't get clarity in the next couple of months we have to start making those contingency plans ... effectively making the UK automotive industry less competitive than it is in a very competitive world right now," he told the BBC.

Read more: Brexit: UK lawmakers reject greater say for final deal vote

Unnecessary costs

He said the contingency plans could include having to invest money in systems or warehouses that the firm may not need long-term.

Deal or no deal? Brexit options boiled down Hard or soft options It's essentially a choice of a harder or softer Brexit. Harder prioritizes border control over trade. UK firms would pay tariffs to do business in the EU, and vice versa. The softest Brexit would see access to the single market, or at least a customs union, maintained. That would require concessions — including the payment of a hefty "divorce bill" — to which the UK has provisionally agreed.

Deal or no deal? Brexit options boiled down A leap into the unknown Businesses have expressed concern about a "cliff edge" scenario, where Britain leaves the EU with no deal. Even if an agreement is reached at the EU bloc level, the worry is that it could be rejected at the last minute. Each of the 27 remaining countries must ratify the arrangements, and any might reject them. That could mean chaos for businesses and individuals.

Deal or no deal? Brexit options boiled down No deal - better than a bad deal? If there is no agreement at all, a fully sovereign UK would be free to strike new trade deals and need not make concessions on the rights of EU citizens living in the UK or pay the financial settlement of outstanding liabilities. However, trade would be crippled. UK citizens in other parts of the EU would be at the mercy of host governments. There would also be a hard EU-UK border in Ireland.

Deal or no deal? Brexit options boiled down Divorce-only deal The EU and the UK could reach a deal on Britain's exiting the bloc without an agreement on future relations. This scenario would still be a very hard Brexit, but would at least demonstrate a degree of mutual understanding. Trade agreements would be conducted, on an interim basis, on World Trade Organization rules.

Deal or no deal? Brexit options boiled down Limited arrangement, like with Canada Most trade tariffs on exported goods are lifted, except for "sensitive" food items like eggs and poultry. However, exporters would have to show their products are genuinely "made in Britain" so the UK does not become a "back door" for global goods to enter the EU. Services could be hit more. The City of London would lose access to the passporting system its lucrative financial business relies on.

Deal or no deal? Brexit options boiled down Bespoke deal: Swiss model Under the Swiss model, the UK would have single market access for goods and services while retaining most aspects of national sovereignty. Switzerland, unlike other members of the European Free Trade Area (EFTA), did not join the European Economic Area (EEA) and was not automatically obliged to adopt freedom of movement. Under a bilateral deal, it agreed to do so but is still dragging its feet.

Deal or no deal? Brexit options boiled down The Norway way As part of the European Economic Area, Norway has accepted freedom of movement – something that no Brexit-supporting UK government would be likely to do. Norway still has to obey many EU rules and is obliged to make a financial contribution to the bloc while having no voting rights. Some see this as the worst of both worlds.

Deal or no deal? Brexit options boiled down A Turkey-style customs union Turkey is the only major country to have a customs union with the EU, as part of a bilateral agreement. Under such an arrangement, the UK would not be allowed to negotiate trade deals outside the EU, instead having the bloc negotiate on its behalf. Many Brexiteers would be unwilling to accept this. It would, however, help minimize disruption at ports and, crucially, at the Irish border. Author: Richard Connor



BMW employs about 8,000 people in the UK.

Last year, the firm said, that despite Brexit, it would produce a fully electric version of the Mini at its UK factory, near the city of Oxford.

The carmaker builds another quintessentially British car, the Rolls Royce, at a facility in Goodwood, West Sussex.

But BMW's chairman Harald Krüger has also made it clear that production could be moved to the Netherlands in the event of a hard Brexit — a scenario where Britain would leave the EU without a comprehensive trade and customs deal.

Read more: Dutch judges dismiss UK expats' post-Brexit rights case

Airbus may quit UK

The German firm joins the European aerospace company Airbus, which warned this week it could pull out of Britain completely if it crashes out of the EU without a deal.

Watch video 01:16 Share Airbus threatens to leave UK Send Facebook google+ Whatsapp Tumblr linkedin stumble Digg reddit Newsvine Permalink https://p.dw.com/p/3077R Airbus threatens to leave UK

Airbus said a 'no deal' scenario would be "catastrophic" for the firm, which builds wings and landing gear for commercial aircraft in Britain, and also has a space technology center in the country.

Airbus employs nearly 15,000 staff at its British facilities.

Britain intends to leave the EU's single market and customs union to forge its own independent trade policy and end free movement of labor.

British Prime Minister Theresa May has not ruled out the possibility of the UK walking away from a deal as a negotiating tactic, but says she expects to get a deal before it exits the bloc on March 29 next year.

A post-Brexit transition period has been agreed until December 2020 to forge a new economic deal the other 27 countries in the bloc. But Airbus said this was "too short" a time.

mm/rc (AFP, dpa)

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