Baroness Jones of Whitchurch (Lab)

I thank my noble friend for those points. As I said at the outset, we very much feel for the people of Luton—this is a terrible time for them. My noble friend is quite right that this is not just about the people who are directly employed in the sector; it has much wider ramifications. At the end of the day, these are commercial decisions, but we are working very closely with Stellantis on how the consultation is dealt with and what support can be given to those affected. There will be the opportunity for some people to transfer to Ellesmere Port, but we understand the impact that this closure will have on the remaining population. The Government recognise that Luton is a vibrant and very diverse community that has ambitions for the future. We are already investing £20 million in the Stage mixed-use development to help unlock Luton’s town centre regeneration plans, so we are looking at what wider support we can give. In the meantime, it is absolutely right that we focus on those who are affected now, and that we give them support through both the Department for Work and Pensions and further negotiations that we will have with Stellantis, to make sure that we provide the maximum protection for those affected by this decision. However, I will not underestimate the challenge of this, and my noble friend is quite right to raise it. I am sure there will be further discussions about what else we can do.