British Chancellor Gordon Brown has said the British government will do "what we can" to make a proposed deal between MG Rover and China's top car maker work.
"We have said to the companies and to the Chinese government that we will do what we can in making this partnership successful," Brown told BBC radio in an interview from Shanghai yesterday, where he arrived after a visit to Beijing.
The Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) has said that talks with MG Rover to create a joint venture, which would give the Chinese firm a launch pad in Europe, were at an advanced stage.
About €1.4 billion is expected to be injected into the joint venture which aims to rejuvenate Rover's model range.
"Both the Chinese and British governments will do what they can," said Brown. "In Britain's case, we are very supportive of this partnership. The talks are designed to safeguard and maintain a large number of British jobs in the industry." MG Rover welcomed the talks, saying progress was beingmade.
A spokesman said SAIC was expected to submit a business plan for the alliance to the Chinese government within days. "We are making very good progress," an MG Rover spokesman said. "Talks are well advanced."
A spokesman for SAIC in London said both sides continued to make progress. "The submission of the feasibility study to the Chinese government will represent part of this ongoing process," he said.
The venture aims to produce about 1 million cars a year. MG Rover has been struggling to break even after being sold four years ago by Germany's BMW for just £10. ... ...