This blog post was published under the 2015 to 2024 Conservative government

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Leigh Turner

Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna

Part of UK in Austria

5th June 2018 Vienna, Austria

Motor City UK, Motor City Austria and the Jaguar i-Pace

The car is bright red – and silent.  It is, perhaps, the best electric car in the world.

I recently had the privilege to attend the launch of the new Jaguar i-Pace in Graz, a couple of hours south of Vienna.

Graz is one of my favourite Austrian cities, with a huge student population, a lively cultural scene and a giant automotive cluster. Companies such as AVL List, Magna Steyr and Nextsense are at the forefront of global automotive technology.

So it is no surprise that numerous Austrian companies based in Graz and the wider region of Styria are working intensively with British car components suppliers, design services and manufacturers.

The British car industry has been going from strength to strength in recent years. It employs more than 800,000 workers and in 2017 exported 1.67m cars – almost 80% of all vehicles manufactured in the UK. Jaguar production increased 20% in 2017 as part of an expansion for the Jaguar Land Rover group as a whole to a record 621,000 vehicles.  As part of that global expansion, Jaguar has created 3,000 new jobs in Graz as production of the new all-electric i-Pace ramps up.

You can see a video of the launch ceremony in Graz, which I attended, here; and take a look at the i-Pace itself, which amongst other things has a range of 298 miles and does 0-60 in 4.5 seconds, here. The model at the launch was brilliant red and a real head-turner – as well as having the characteristic silence of electric vehicles.  Yes, I was tempted.

The Jaguar i-Pace is a striking example of the close links between the motor cities of Birmingham and Graz.  I look forward to seeing deliveries begin later this year as the electric vehicle revolution gains ground.

1 comment on “Motor City UK, Motor City Austria and the Jaguar i-Pace

  1. Interesting article and thanks for sharing. Our Pentland Jaguar (www.john-clark.co.uk/jaguar) division has seen a big demand for the Jaguar i – Pace model here in Scotland. The Scottish government has a big focus on electric vehicles and I am sure the demand for electric Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles will continue to grow.

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About Leigh Turner

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of…

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of the UN and other organisations; stories here will reflect that.

About me: I arrived in Vienna in August 2016 for my second posting in this wonderful city, having first served here in the mid-1980s. My previous job was as HM Consul-General and Director-General for Trade and Investment for Turkey, Central Asia and South Caucasus based in Istanbul.

Further back: I grew up in Nigeria, Exeter, Lesotho, Swaziland and Manchester before attending Cambridge University 1976-79. I worked in several government departments before joining the Foreign Office in 1983.

Keen to go to Africa and South America, I’ve had postings in Vienna (twice), Moscow, Bonn, Berlin, Kyiv and Istanbul, plus jobs in London ranging from the EU Budget to the British Overseas Territories.

2002-6 I was lucky enough to spend four years in Berlin running the house, looking after the children (born 1992 and 1994) and doing some writing and journalism.

To return to Vienna as ambassador is a privilege and a pleasure. I hope this blog reflects that.