The European automobile manufacturers have welcomed the resolution adopted today by the European Parliament on the future of the automotive industry in light of the current crisis.

The European Parliament calls on EU member states and the European Commission to:

• Increase the lending capacity of the European Investment Bank
• Speed up and simplify access to credit
• Coordinate fleet renewal measures throughout the EU
• Support measures to retain a high-skilled workforce
• Facilitate and sustain high levels of R&D
• Ensure a balanced and fair trade agreement with South-Korea
• Scrutinise new regulatory proposals to ensure competitiveness

Ivan Hodac, secretary general of the vehicle manufacturers’ trade association ACEA, said: “The Parliament underlines that the financial and economic crisis causes serious problems and that the automotive industry is particularly hard hit.

"The Parliament puts its full political weight behind support measures from European institutions and governments and stresses that urgency is key.

“As the Parliament states, the current crisis is caused by the credit crunch and the rapid deterioration of demand. These factors outweigh by far the structural issues that manufacturing sectors are facing in today’s globalised economy. The car manufacturers have responded swiftly, but the extraordinary circumstances demand exceptional measures to ensure employment and investments.”

The ACEA members are BMW Group, DAF Trucks, Daimler, Fiat Group, Ford of Europe, General Motors Europe, Jaguar Land Rover, MAN Nutzfahrzeuge, Porsche, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Renault, Scania, Toyota Motor Europe, Volkswagen and Volvo. They provide direct employment to more than 2.3 million people and indirectly support another 10 million jobs.