Advanced manufacturing and world-class design are key to fixing Britain's economy, according to the chief executive of Jaguar Land Rover.
Ralf Speth said despite a 鈥渃hronic shortage鈥 of people going into science and engineering in the 海角视频, manufacturing should be at the heart of British industry and could help to cure its 鈥渆conomic ills鈥.
Speaking at a dinner at Birmingham City Council House during a three-day conference organised by the British American Business Council, he added that design, innovation and research and development would be critical for the success of the 海角视频 and the US.
鈥淭hese value-creating advanced processes enable the company to adapt and to change as customer needs adapt and change,鈥 said Dr Speth.
鈥淭he integration of technology, business, environmental and social best practice is vital in order for manufacturing companies to deliver to the customer today and deliver to the customer tomorrow.
鈥淚n certain sectors Britain is very good at this 鈥 defence, pharmaceutical and automotive 鈥 but it鈥檚 an area where it can learn lessons from abroad and in particular from the US.
鈥淭he technological revolution that has come out of the US is no accident.
鈥淎t JLR we have a very ambitious programme to develop about 40 new products over the next five years.
鈥淭his year alone we will invest around 拢3 billion in the product creation process, making JLR the 海角视频鈥檚 largest automotive research and development investor.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no better way of reindustrialising than through manufacturing.鈥
He added that Jaguar Land Rover鈥檚 recovery was 鈥減roof that Britain still has the advanced manufacturing base that can compete on the world stage鈥.
The US is the second biggest market for Jaguar and the third biggest for Land Rover.
Mr Speth said the British government has been at the forefront of global free trade agreements, but that there is still a great deal of regulation between the US and Europe.
鈥淭here are so many different systems and this complexity adds input and production costs,鈥 he said.
鈥淭he cost of complexity is passed onto the consumer. That harms the operation and the marketplace. If removed the benefit would be an uplift in trade and improved exports. An FDA agreement would add about half a per cent to US and European GDP overnight.鈥
The other keynote speaker, Business Secretary Vince Cable, presented a robust defence against euro sceptics at the dinner attended by 300 delegates from the US and 海角视频.
He said one of the compelling reasons to stay in the EU was that the 海角视频 hosts more foreign companies than France, Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands combined.
Referring to Lord Lawson being among the senior political figures calling for Britain鈥檚 withdrawal, he said that the EU was where it is because of the 鈥渆normous clout鈥 it wields and it was 鈥渋nconceivable鈥 that Britain would have the same influence on its own.
鈥淭here would be, potentially, a blow to business confidence,鈥 he said.
鈥淢any of you know as you鈥檙e in business that confidence is fragile. So even before we start looking at the detail we have that potential shock to confidence of just opening up this whole debate all over again.鈥
Dr Cable added that the EU should not be blamed for creating the red tape hindering British business. 鈥淢uch regulation has not been created by Brussels 鈥 it鈥檚 largely what we have done ourselves,鈥 he said.
He praised Jaguar Land Rover, saying they had 鈥渃reated 9,000 additional jobs in the past two years and have continued to invest here, and they will be doing more.鈥
