Workers at Vauxhall's factory in Luton have told of their surprise at how quickly they could lose their jobs. It came after parent company Stellantis announced the closure of its van-making plant and subsequent relocation to Ellesmere Port in Cheshire.

Labour minister Jonathan Reynolds told the Commons that Carlos Tavares, chief executive of Stellantis, which owns Vauxhall, had said he felt "extremely frustrated" by the lack of action from the previous Conservative government which meant "his desire was to close the Luton plant".

Volkswagen isn’t the only automaker eyeing plant closures as Stellantis has proposed consolidating their manufacturing footprint in the United Kingdom. As part of this effort, the company wants to close the Luton plant marking the end of 120 years of production since Vauxhall first established the facility in 1905.

Luton's Vauxhall van factory is set to close in 2025, thanks in part to the UK government's Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEV) mandate. This could be the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the destruction of the UK's car manufacturing sector.