Jaguar Land Rover’s (JLR) commitment to the UK car industry was re-affirmed last month with the world debut in London of the new Range Rover Evoque.

It has been designed and engineered in Britain and is being made here, following major investments to support its production.

The new Evoque (www.jaguarlandrover.com) joins the Range Rover family with a choice of petrol, diesel and hybrid electric engines.

From 2020, every new Jaguar and Land Rover will have the option of electrification; in a first for the compact luxury SUV segment, the Range Rover Evoque will be electrified with a 48V ‘mild’ hybrid system from launch.

Ralf Speth, JLR’s chief executive, said: “The original Evoque is one of the company’s greatest sales success stories; and with over 217 international accolades since it was launched, it is also the most awarded Land Rover.

The Range Rover Evoque has been a fundamental driver in JLR’s global success. Since it first rolled off the Halewood production line, we have exported 80% of all we have made.

“Our commitment to UK production remains firm, and the new Evoque benefits from a £1 billion investment. With this, we are introducing new technology and Range Rover refinement into the luxury compact SUV segment that the original model created.”

Mr Speth added that contracts worth more than £4 billion have been awarded to UK companies to support production of the new Evoque — “a testament to JLR’s continued confidence in the competitiveness of its domestic suppliers.

The company’s £1 billion investment in the new Evoque covers research, development, design, advanced technology engineering and manufacturing.”

Enhancements to develop ‘state of the art’ flexible manufacturing for the new Evoque at Halewood, comprise a new stamping line and hybrid-electric assembly technology, alongside significant extensions and upgrades to existing facilities.

The company says that production overseas will meet local market demand for the latest addition to the Range Rover line-up.

Order books for the new Evoque opened on 22 November, with deliveries to customers in the UK, Europe and the USA starting early in 2019.