The decision by Nissan Motor Co. to reaffirm its commitment to manufacturing cars in Northeast England, despite the referendum in June in favor of leaving the European Union, was widely welcomed in Britain.
This decision will not have been taken lightly. It followed a meeting between the chairman of Nissan and Theresa May, the British prime minister, and a letter from Greg Clark, the secretary of state for industry, who visited Japan to speak with members of the board of Nissan. The letter confirming the oral assurances given to Nissan has not been published for reasons of commercial confidentiality.
As I noted in a letter to the editor of the London Times published on Nov. 1, the key factors for Nissan would have been the personal involvement of the prime minister and their assessment of the British government's sincerity and determination to deliver on its undertakings.