Half a million earmarked to market Coventry gigafactory site

Another £500,000 is to be spent on marketing the site of a proposed huge electric car battery factory at Coventry Airport.

Outline planning permission was given earlier this year for a site that could create a gigafactory and 6,000 jobs.

But almost six months later, no manufacturer has been identified.

Coventry City Council's commitment brings its public investment to the gigafactory plans to just under £2m.

In the Commons, Coventry North East Labour MP Colleen Fletcher asked Prime Minister Boris Johnson: "Will he give a concrete guarantee for the resources needed for the West Midlands gigafactory project to go ahead?"

Mr Johnson replied: "I can tell that we do actively support gigafactories because I believe they can be of... huge advantage for the UK economy."

The Labour-run city council's Conservative leader Gary Ridley said: "We're now being asked for money to market the site.

"It does beg the question have we got anyone that's interested in this site? Because if we haven't, are we just fooling ourselves? Is this just fanciful?"

Rowan Smith, from Coventry Aeroplane Club, which would be made homeless by the factory, said he thought 6,000 jobs "and the argument for the... gigafactory is quite strong".

But he added there were "a number of businesses on here and there's a number of employees who still have proper jobs".

Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]