During the interview, there were signs that perhaps Musk has not been quite as happy with “continental Europe” as previous reports have suggested. In one example, as Sunak and Musk discussed how to make the right environment for new businesses, Musk said: “I don’t quite know how it works in the UK – probably better than continental Europe” before talking about the need for proper incentives, suggesting that with high risk should come high reward. Sunak joked in response to Musk: “I think that was a very soft pitch for a tax policy.”
Earlier this month, on X, Musk also responded to a picture of them both, saying: “I know he is not popular among some of the public, but I was very impressed with Rishi Sunak – he is an asset to the UK.”
What stands in the way?
There is no denying that the two like each other, but at the same time, Musk also said he liked Macron. What could help get the UK over the line as the winner?
Money feels like the obvious way. Gigafactories take a huge amount of capital to build and, as we’ve seen with Britishvolt, without strong government backing, they can falter.
But it seems the UK government may have satisfied this demand, as ahead of the 2023 Autumn Statement, chancellor of the exchequer Jeremy Hunt announced new £4.5 billion funding for advanced manufacturing industries in the UK. A large part of this money is solely to attract companies like Tesla.
