London: Britain's Business Secretary Lord Peter Mandelson has urged Tata Motors to respond quickly to a revised offer of government funding for its luxury Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) brands.
Tata Motors, advised by Citigroup and Standard Chartered, is seeking a government guarantee for a £ 340 million , three-year European Investment Bank loan, plus guarantees for private bank loans worth nearly £ 500 million.
Tata is reportedly unhappy with conditions ministers had set, including board representation at JLR and operational control, but the government has abandoned most of these, The Financial Times newspaper reported.
Mandelson on Monday urged Tata to "quicken the pace" of negotiations after JLR announced last week 300 jobs would be cut at its plant at Halewood in northwest England.
JLR has decided to end production of the luxury Jaguar X-Type following a slump in demand for new cars in Britain, amid growing accusations that the British government has been slow to respond to the needs of the car industry.
"Jaguar Land Rover is a good, first rate company with many strengths and a good future," Mandelson told Sky News.
"I am waiting for the owners, Tata Motors, to come back and make their response to the offer of financial support the government has made to them," he said.
"Having been told that there was great urgency in responding to the needs of Jaguar Land Rover, we have made our proposals, we have made our offers and now we are waiting for a response.
"I am simply saying that if this situation is so urgent, I think that Tata need to quicken the pace of their response," Mandelson said.
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