Safe Speed Forums

Just reading certain articles on the Rover crisis Ive read a few statements how the governments in other countries help their own domestic car manufacturers via money and sales.

For example in France apparently all French government and police cars are French (Peugeot/Citroen) made.

The Italian government give certain funds to Fiat to help them, the same happens in Germany for BMW.
My relative working for Nissan says the Japanese Government have strong relations with Nissan.

Then we hear stories of the Government not taking the original Alchemy plan for Rover, although despite massive job cuts, could have secured a long term survival of Rover which could have went onto better things.

Its clear that managerial mismanagement has been the downfall of Rover for not changing with the changing economic circumstances but do you agree that the UK government could have done far more to secure Rovers and this countries automobile future?

Why is it the UK Government never helped Rover more when they clearly could have?

I can also tell (working for a occupant safety company) that Rover closing its doors has spelt long term disater for at least one of the five main occupant safety companies in this country simply becasue there isnt enough demand around.

IMO, the UK government is mortally afraid of being accused of not obeying EU laws, particularly those regarding competition. Helping Rover would be seen here as unauthorised subsidy, though a similar practice in France or Germany would be seen as patriotism!
Surely you've noticed that we allow the purchase of our companies by EU ones but that the converse is heavily discouraged or disallowed for one reason or another.
Another problem with our membership of the EU is our "gold-plating" of EU regulations, i.e. making them more stringent than they need to be. E.g. Human Rights legislation, mass closure of abbattoirs, the working-time directive that will cripple our haulage industry but has no such effect over the Channel, Disability Access Regulations etc etc
Anit-EU campaigners will say "look what the EU have made us do" whereas the truth is that the faceless bureaucrats in Whitehall have interpreted the law from Brussels in a ridiculously pedantic way.
Rant over.

Yes cyclist...you are absolutely right. ridiculous pedantic way...yes almost self abusive slef destructive way I'd say.

The mandarins run or rather misrun this country, the politicians are too vain, greedy and thick to understand this or the detail of what they are doing. I've looked into too many things such as the way they made the Foot & Mouth situation into a £23 billion national disaster and lied about having to kill peoples pets because of the EU, Industrial legislation motorsport and its all the same.

Maybe the Americans have the best idea - change of govt = change of mandarins too ?