Transport: GM may pull out of Britain

A senior director of General Motors, which owns the car maker Vauxhall, said last night his company may pull out of Britain if it does not join a single currency.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's The World Tonight, Dr Mustafa Mohatarem said that unless the Government committed itself to monetary union the company may have to switch production from the UK. He said that a single currency would remove the exchange rate volatility that is damaging profits and added that many manufacturers jobs that relied on sales in Europe were also dependent in Britain joining EMU.