Industry Topics

COVID-19: Automotive Business Support

SMMT updates the Covid automotive webpage regularly, but the most up to date information can be found on the government hub:

GOVERNMENT CORONAVIRUS HUB

Get in touch with SMMT if you have any inquiries about COVID-19:

EMAIL SMMT – COVID19

 

  • Covid-19 Update – across the UK – January 2022

    In England

    From 27 January, the UK Government has reverted England to ‘Plan A’, which means that there are no mandatory face cover rules in shops or on public transport, a Covid pass is no longer required for access to large events or night clubs, and the work from home guidance, which was re-introduced in December 2021, has been removed. The Government’s focus now remains on encouraging the public to get their booster (or third jab) or come forward for their first or second vaccination jabs.

    People who test positive using a rapid LFD test are no longer required to take a confirmatory PCR test, but must immediately self-isolate. The self-isolation period for those who test positive in England has been cut to five full days, with negative tests required on Days 5 and 6 to be released from the isolation period (those tests must be taken 24hrs apart).

    In a statement to the House of Commons, the Prime Minister has suggested that when the remaining Covid legislation comes to its end in March, that currently there are no plans to seek an extension to any of these. This could see the end of mandatory self-isolation and free rapid LFD tests for the community.

    UK travel rules have been relaxed and currently there are no countries listed on the UK’s red travel list. From 11 February, all testing requirements for fully vaccinated travellers arriving into the UK will be dropped. Travellers will still need to complete a ‘simplified’ passenger locator form. Travellers who aren’t fully vaccinated will no longer have to self-isolate on arrival, or take a test on day eight. However, they will still have to show proof of a negative Covid test taken two days before they travel, and they must still take a post-arrival PCR test. They won’t need to self-isolate unless the day two test is positive.

    In Northern Ireland

    The NI Executive has removed the need for offices to “take reasonable measures for 2m (6ft) social distancing”, although risk assessments should continue to be carried out. The wearing of face coverings remains compulsory in shops, indoor-seated venues and visitor attractions, public transport and some other settings.

    Northern Ireland has followed England by lowering the self-isolation period to five days, with two negative LFD tests required on days 5 and 6.

    In Scotland

    The Scottish Government has eased its Covid restrictions. The requirement for physical distancing in indoor settings where people don’t have to wear a face covering, has reduced to 1m (3ft) from 2m (6 ft). From Monday 31 January, work from home advice will be lifted, with a “phased return to the office” being proposed alongside a mixture of work from home and in-office work. Restrictions that remain in place include a requirement for shops and businesses to take measures to limit the spread of Covid and the wearing of face coverings are compulsory on public transport and in most indoor spaces including secondary schools.

    Scotland has reduced its self-isolation period to five days, with negative LFD tests required on days 5 and 6.

    In Wales

    The Welsh Government is slowly returning Wales to Level 0 of its Covid alert system. There are no longer limits on numbers at outdoor events, there is no longer a legal requirement to work at home and businesses no longer need to ensure 2m (6ft) social distancing in the workplace. Those measures which remain in place are compulsory wearing of face coverings in schools, on public transport, and in shops and hospitals, and secondary school pupils are asked to test for Covid three times a week.

    Wales has reduced its self-isolation period to five days, with a negative LFD test required on days 5 and 6.

     

    UK Government Update – 8 December

    Work from home guidance re-introduced in England

    The Prime Minister has announced that England will move to Plan B of the Covid Winter Plan, in response to the growing spread of the Omicron variant in the UK.

    The Prime Minister’s full opening statement is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-opening-statement-at-covid-19-press-conference-8-december-2021

    The following measures are set to come into place:

    • Work from home: From Monday 13 December, the Government will reintroduce guidance to work from home where possible.
    • Face coverings: From Friday 10 December, face coverings will be mandatory “in most public venues,” including theatres and cinemas. The wearing of face coverings had already been made mandatory in shops and branches.
    • Self-isolation: The Prime Minister confirmed that self-isolation would only be required should an individual test positive for Covid-19. The Government intends to introduce daily contact tests for contacts of confirmed positive cases instead of the ten-day self-isolation period. More information on this will follow.
    • NHS Covid Pass: From Wednesday 15 December, the NHS Covid Pass on the NHS App will become mandatory for entry into nightclubs and settings where large crowds gather – including unseated indoor events with 500 or more attendees, unseated outdoor events with 4,000 or more attendees and any event with 10,000 or more attendees. People will be able to demonstrate proof of two vaccine doses via the app. Having considered the evidence since the emergence of Omicron, proof of a negative lateral flow test will also be accepted.

    A full list of guidance on these changes will be available on gov.uk in the coming days. Face covering regulations will be laid in parliament on Thursday 9 December, with the remaining regulations laid on Monday 13 December. Parliament will debate the measures next week, with a vote expected to take place on Tuesday 14 December.

    The government will keep the data under constant review. The regulations are set to expire six weeks after implementation, with a review after three weeks.

     

    UK Government Update – 30 November

    Covid measures amended in response to Omicron variant

    In response to the emergence of a new Covid variant – Omicron – the UK Government has amended Covid rules on travel, wearing of face coverings and Test & Trace.

    The new measures in England, which have taken effect from 4am, Tuesday 30 November, are:

    • All travellers arriving into the country will be required to take a PCR test on or before Day 2 and self-isolate until they have received a negative test result. These PCR tests can be purchased from private providers. Free NHS tests are not valid for this purpose. SMMT Reminder – guidance on travel exemptions for specialist technical workers.
    • All contacts of suspected Omicron cases must self-isolate for 10 days, regardless of their vaccination status. They will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace.
    • Face coverings will be compulsory in shops and other settings such as banks, post offices and hairdressers, as well as on public transport unless individuals are exempt from doing so.

    The UK has placed 10 countries in southern Africa on the red list, with all arrivals from these countries required to hotel quarantine for 10 days upon arrival into the UK, and must take a Day 2 and Day 8 PCR test. These countries are: Angola, Namibia, Mozambique, Zambia, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini. These measures came into effect on 25 November and are aligned across all the UK nations.

    Finally, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has recommended that:

    • Booster jabs be rolled out to all adults (those aged 18 and over).
    • Reducing the gap between the second dose and booster to three months. Boosters will be rolled out to priority groups first, then by age group.

    Information on the Covid booster jab rollout and how to book one is available here: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination/book-coronavirus-vaccination/

     

    Monthly COVID-19 Updates


  • In response to the COVID-19 situation, UK Government has set out a range of measures to support public services, people and businesses through the disruption caused by the coronavirus.

    All of these measures can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus/business-support

    Government has also launched a Coronavirus Business Support Finder: https://www.gov.uk/business-coronavirus-support-finder

    There is also a Government FAQ available at: https://www.businesssupport.gov.uk/faqs/

    Please find below details and links to the variety of measures published, which will be of most help to UK automotive businesses and associated supply chains. This support covers:

    • Employment Support
    • Business Finance
    • Tax Relief
    • Support for Exporters
    • Business support for companies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (information relevant to devolved business matters)

    UK Government’s Coronavirus (COVID-19) action plan
    For more information on the Government’s whole of UK approach – and what it plans to do – to tackle the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, it has published its Action Plan here:
    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-action-plan


  • For more information on how SMMT is supporting the industry click here. If you have any questions or queries please email covid19@smmt.co.uk

    Previous webinars

    4 November 11:30 – 12:30

    Join SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes and the SMMT policy team this Wednesday 4 November from 11:30 to 12:30 for updates on the new lockdown measures announced by Boris Johnson on Saturday. These new measures are to be introduced from Thursday 5 November. We will cover which businesses are able to remain open, MOT, service and repair, approvals, furlough provisions and any clarifications we have received from government following questions members have already asked on these topics. While there will be an opportunity to post further questions during the call we only have an hour and may not be able to get through all of them. We will take all questions away.

    Slides and recording

    Thursday 24th September, 10:00 – 10:45

    New measures to slow the rate of COVID infection are due to be announced by the Prime Minister this afternoon and this evening. Join us at a special SMMT COVID-19 webinar on Thursday 24 September, from 10:00 to 10:45, to go through what is announced and what it means for the automotive sector and your business.

    Speakers:
    Yung Tran, Director of member services and business development, SMMT
    Andrew Harries, Government Affairs Manager, SMMT

    LISTEN HERE

    Thursday 30th July, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis and beyond on the automotive sector. Mike Hawes will be joined by Ian Henry of AutoAnalysis and SMMT’s Senior Economist, Matt Croucher. Ian will be delivering his mid-year production outlook report and Matt will be providing an economic and market update.

    Speakers:
    Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    Andrew Harries, Government Affairs Manager, SMMT
    Matt Croucher, Senior Economist, SMMT
    Ian Henry, Managing Director, AutoAnalysis

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 14th July, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the automotive sector. Mike Hawes will be joined by PwC who will be explaining the results of their European supply chain survey.

    Speakers:
    Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    Andrew Harries, Government Affairs Manager, SMMT
    Raimund Wolf, PWC

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 30th June, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the automotive sector. Mike Hawes will be joined by Mick Flanagan and Ray Tate of Adient who will be telling us about the challenges they’ve faced during the pandemic.

    Speakers:
    Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    Andrew Harries, Government Affairs Manager, SMMT
    Mick Flanagan, Vice President, Adient
    Ray Tate, Plant Manager, Sunderland JIT Operations, Adient

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 16th June, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the automotive sector. Mike Hawes will be joined by Brennan Gourdie of Leyland Trucks and John Keefe of Getlink who will be telling us about the challenges they’ve faced during the pandemic.

    Speakers:
    Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    Andrew Harries, Government Affairs Manager, SMMT
    Brennan Gourdie, Managing Director, Leyland Trucks
    John Keefe, Director of Public Affairs, Eurotunnel

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 9th June, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the automotive sector. Mike Hawes will be joined by Paul Dowell of RSM. RSM are one of the largest audit, tax and consulting firms across the world with representation in 120 countries and a team of around 43,000 people. Paul Dowell is a Director within RSM’s Consultancy team and has specialised in improving the productivity of manufacturing businesses for more than 20 years.

    Paul will outline some strategies to cope with:
    • a sudden uplift in demand
    • growing capacity without committing to long term investment
    • maximising throughput with reduced staffing and
    • achieving a restart at pace.

    Speakers:
    Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    Andrew Harries, Government Affairs Manager, SMMT
    Paul Dowell, Director, RSM

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 2nd June, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the automotive sector. We will be joined by Andy Hamilton, CEO of Euro Car Parts. Find out from Andy how the largest car parts distributor has kept complicated warehouse and logistics operations going through COVID to ensure vehicles can keep moving safely on our roads

    Speakers:
    Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    Andrew Harries, Government Affairs Manager, SMMT
    Andy Hamilton, CEO, Euro Car Parts

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 26th May, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the automotive sector. We will be joined by David Soden from Deloitte and Stephen Pegge from UK Finance.

    Topics will include:
    • Corporate insolvency bill
    • Access to finance

    Speakers:
    Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    Andrew Harries, Government Affairs Manager, SMMT
    David Soden, Partner, Deloitte
    Stephen Pegge, Managing Director, Commercial Finance, UK Finance

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 19th May, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the automotive sector. We will be joined by guests from Industry Forum and will be talking about post-COVID vertical startup.

    Topics will include:
    • Total productive Management (TPM)
    • Early management
    • Reverse Fishbone technique

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT
    • Simon Carr, General Manager, Industry Forum

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 12th May, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join us for our next webinar on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the automotive sector. We will be joined by guests from Grant Thornton and will be talking about alternate liquidity options for your business plan.

    Topics will include:
    • Business planning
    • Business Viability
    • Practical Steps

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT
    • Eddie Williams, Grant Thornton LLP
    • Oliver Bridge, Grant Thornton LLP
    • Owen Edwards, Grant Thornton LLP

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 5th May, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes and guests from Squire Patton Boggs to explore COVID-19 and offer practical advice to the automotive sector.

    Topics will include:
    • How to restart and ramp up
    • What to do on the shop floor
    • Update from SMMT

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT
    • Guests from Squire Patton Boggs

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 28th April, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes and PWC, to explore restart following COVID-19.

    Topics will include:
    • Restart across the industry
    • Finance and Furlough
    • Update from SMMT

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT
    • Cara Haffey, Automotive and Manufacturing Leader, PwC United Kingdom
    • Mark Couttie, Strategy& Automotive Partner, PwC United Kingdom

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 22nd April , 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes, to explore restart following COVID-19.

    Topics will include:
    • Restart across the industry
    • Finance and Furlough
    • Update from SMMT

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT
    • James Nicholson, UK Automotive Strategy Leader, Ernst & Young LLP

    LISTEN HERE

    Wednesday 15th April , 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes, to explore COVID-19 and the impact on the automotive sector.

    Topics will include:
    • Access to finance
    • SMEs, the stranded middle, and large businesses
    • CBIL and CCFF
    • Update from SMMT

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT
    • Richard Hill, NatWest
    • Martin Chitty, Gowling WLG

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 7 April, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    Join SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes, to explore COVID-19 and the impact on the automotive sector.

    Topics will include:
    • Access to finance
    • SMEs, the stranded middle, and large businesses
    • CBIL and CCFF

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT
    • Jennifer Tankard, Principal, Commercial Finance and Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending, UK Finance

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 31 March 2020

    SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes and guests from Squire Patton Boggs and the Treasury to explore COVID-19 and the impact on the automotive sector.

    Topics included:

    • People and business protection
    • SMMT asks and input to government and stakeholders
    • Current legislation for critical vehicles
    • Questions and concerns from members

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT
    • Matthew Kirk, International Affairs Advisor, Squire Patton Boggs
    • Charlie Frost, Employment Partner, Squire Patton Boggs
    • Ben Kerry, Labour Market Policy, HMT

    LISTEN HERE

    Tuesday 24 March 2020, 15:00 – 16:00 GMT

    SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes and UK Finance to explore COVID-19 and the impact on the automotive sector.

    Topics included:

    • People and business protection
    • SMMT asks and input to government and stakeholders
    • The Business Interruption Loan Scheme
    • Cash grants for small business
    • Business rate relief
    • Questions and concerns from members

    Speakers:

    • Mike Hawes, Chief Executive, SMMT
    • Jennifer Tankard, Principal, Commercial Finance and Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending, UK Finance
    • Hannah Boardman, Deputy Director, Automotive Unit, Department Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS)
    • Jennifer Pheasey, Head of Policy, SMMT

    LISTEN HERE

    This recording has been edited to reflect the latest government guidance

  • COVID-19 – Links to Government and Other Guidance

    This page provides links to Government issued guidance to support safe working practices across the UK economy. In addition, the page includes industry developed guidance and best practice, which has been developed to help automotive businesses understand and implement these important safety measures.

    Information on other support measures (e.g. financial and employment) continues to be available from the Business Support tab on the SMMT website.

    Disclaimer – SMMT FAQs and Industry Guidance – COVID-19 Automotive Business Support Hub
    Whilst SMMT endeavours to ensure that the content of information in its FAQs and industry guidance is accurate and up-to-date at the date of publication, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made as to its accuracy or completeness and therefore the information in the FAQs and Industry Guidance should not be relied upon. It is each company’s responsibility to comply with the current COVID-19 legislation and related government guidance. Therefore, SMMT information and guidance are not legally binding. Readers should always seek appropriate advice from a suitably qualified expert before taking, or refraining from taking, any action. SMMT disclaims liability for any loss, howsoever caused, arising directly or indirectly from reliance on the information in its FAQs and industry guidance relating to COVID-19 as published on its website.

  • The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) is providing regular updates for the UK automotive industry on the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on the sector. This newsletter is a new tool in SMMT’s efforts to keep the industry updated on the information most useful to automotive businesses and their employees.

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