No 10 leaves the door open to Chinese EV tariffs as the price of joining the EU's 'Made in Europe' scheme

A Franco-German proposal would require Britain to dynamically align with Brussels' trade defence measures, including the tariffs the EU imposed on Chinese electric cars in 2024. Beijing's London embassy warned that any such move would be 'discriminatory'. Jonathan Reynolds said this week he would not be coerced into following EU policy. Downing Street still insisted inclusion would be 'good news' for car jobs.

France dropped its opposition to Britain joining the scheme, formally the Industrial Accelerator Act.

Up to £68bn of UK car trade is at risk if Britain is frozen out.

China's embassy says protectionism 'runs counter to WTO rules and market principles'.