Airbus warns it could pull out of UK

Company says UK government's handling of Brexit is 'a disgrace'

Airbus, the European plane maker, has warned it could pull out of the UK if its ability to compete on the global stage is harmed by a no-deal Brexit.

In a video message posted on social media, the company's chief executive, Tom Enders, said the company "will have to make potentially very harmful decisions for the UK" in the event of no deal.

Enders said it was a "disgrace" that businesses could still not plan for Brexit.

"We, along with many of our peers, have repeatedly called for clarity, but we still have no idea what is really going on here," he said.

The European aerospace group is one of the biggest manufacturers in the UK, where it employs more than 14,000 people. A further 110,000 supply chain jobs depend on its operations, which have an annual turnover of 6 billion pounds ($7.8 billion).

Airbus employees in the UK include 6,000 jobs at its main wings factory at Broughton in Wales, as well as 3,000 at Filton, near Bristol, where wings are designed and supported.

Enders said: "Please don't listen to the Brexiteers' madness which asserts that, because we have huge plants here, we will not move and we will always be here. They are wrong."

Airbus's latest intervention follows announcements by two other companies that they were moving their headquarters out of the UK.

Sony said it would transfer its European HQ from the UK to the Netherlands to avoid disruptions caused by Brexit.

And appliance maker Dyson announced it was moving its headquarters to Singapore, from Malmesbury in Wiltshire, although it said the decision had nothing to do with Brexit.

However, another company, Japanese technology company Fujitsu, told the BBC it had "zero intention" of moving its operations out of London.

Enders called for a pragmatic withdrawal agreement that allows for an orderly Brexit. Airbus had previously backed Theresa May's proposed deal, which failed to get a parliamentary majority.

Enders said: "Of course it's not possible to pick up and move our large UK factories to other parts of the world immediately. However, aerospace is a long-term business and we could be forced to redirect future investments in the event of a no-deal Brexit and make no mistake, there are plenty of countries out there who would love to build the wings for Airbus aircraft.

"In a global economy the UK no longer has the capability to go it alone. Major aerospace projects are multinational affairs," he added.

However, Enders said Britain's multibillion-pound aerospace sector, a world-leader for a century, is "standing at a precipice".

"Brexit is threatening to destroy a century of development based on education, research and human capital," he said.