BUSINESS Minister Matthew Hancock has hailed the Mini production plant at Cowley as proof that “Britain’s automotive renaissance is in full flight”.

Visiting the Said Business School’s Launchpad for entrepreneurs yesterday, Mr Hancock MP said: “Here in Oxford the engineers and the staff at Mini have a world-beating product that’s in huge demand.”

Conservative Mr Hancock, who was appointed Minister of State for Business, Energy and Enterprise this year, said the domestic car industry was “a modern British manufacturing success story”, even though many people had deemed it all but over a decade ago.

He said: “The Mini combines great engineering with beautiful design elegance. Across the world people want to be part of it.

“I think it’s a sign that when we combine the creative genius with modern high-value manufacturing we come up with world-beating products and Oxford is at the heart of that.”

The Minister also praised the Oxford Launchpad, which began in February 2014 as a meeting place for Oxford-based entrepreneurs, for being at “the leading edge of turning brilliant ideas” into profitable businesses.

He said: “Increasingly Britain will pay her way in the world by turning great ideas into great companies.’’

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