OXFORD has been hailed as “the heart of the Mini empire” after it was revealed the Cowley plant produced the third highest number of cars in Britain last year.

A total of 178,993 Minis rolled off the production line at the Oxford factory in 2014.

Only Nissan’s factory in Sunderland and Land Rover’s combined plants in Castle Bromwich, Halewood and Solihull produced more.

The historic figure was reached in the same year the plant produced the three-millionth ‘new’ Mini built since 2001.

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Oxford City Council leader Bob Price said Mini had been able to benefit from the high quality of workers in the city.

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Bob Price

He said: “Just looking in the factory You can see the commitment the workers have in their job. The organisation of the production line is really great.

“It is a very big supply chain with BMW. It is not just the plant that employs workers, it is the sub contractors as well.

“Their contribution to the area is much bigger than just the 4,000 workers at the plant.”

He added: “It has created jobs for people but it has also put the Cowley Road plant at the heart of the Mini empire.

“That confidence they are showing in Cowley and Oxford has to be welcomed.

“It is very good news for jobs and it also shows the great quality and competence of design in BMW.”

Minis have been produced at the Cowley Road plant since May 1959 when the first classic Mini was completed.

The ‘new’ Mini made by BMW started to be built there in 2001 and the plant now employs 4,000 people including 92 apprentices.

More than two million of the cars made at the plant have been shipped worldwide.

Cowley plant spokeswoman Dinara Omarova said: “We are delighted with the news.

“Over the past few years BMW put the majority of a £750m investment in British plants into the Cowley plant to prepare for the next generation of Minis, which we started building in November 2013.

“We would like to thank our workforce in Oxford and Swindon for their part in making Mini the success it is today.”

The combined value of Mini exports from the UK in the last 14 years is close to £30bn.

Oxfordshire Chamber of Commerce president Peter Smith said: “BMW UK is a member of the chamber and we have worked closely with them over the past few years.

“It is tremendous news both for the UK and Oxford in particular that both BMW and Mini brands in the UK have broken records with sales exceeding 200,000 vehicles for the first time in the company’s history.

“The factory and associated chain create skilled jobs which is great for the local economy.”

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