JLR shutdown extends further as ministers in UK meet suppliers

New Delhi: Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) have confirmed that production in their factories will remain suspended until next month at the earliest. Now, the business secretary and industry minister are visiting JLR on Tuesday for the first time since the cyber-attack to meet with the company and firms in the carmaker’s supply chain.

The company hasn’t managed to produce cars since the attack at the end of August and has been forced down due to their IT networks, and there’s a growing fear that the company’s suppliers might go bust if not supported. JLR confirmed that their UK facilities in Solihull, Halewood and Wolverhampton won’t be resuming operations until October 1st.

The company in their statement, noted that their focus was to support the customers, suppliers, colleagues and the retailers who remain open. The BBC reported that their sources have said that the disruptions could last until November. In fact, the country’s industry minister was going to visit JLR alongside Business Secretary Peter Kyle, to address host companies in supply and the lot.

He noted the main priority remained to help Jaguar Land Rover get back on its feet at the earliest possible time and the long-term health of the supply chain. The stoppage is thought to be costing JLR around £50m per week. The Politicians and union leaders have warned of potentially disastrous consequences for some businesses in the supply chain, especially the smaller companies. 

JLR’s UK plants at present employ 30,000 people directly and another 1,00,000 are engaged indirectly in the firm’s supply chain, and 60,000 further workers who rely on the spending of these workers. Data breaches in the car industry have been a growing trend,  with Stellantis reporting the same about their North American customers. The carmakers around the world have been facing many disruptions lately owing to supply chain or data breaching.