AS 2,000 Vauxhall workers come to terms with the shock news of the closure of the car group's Luton plant, it emerged that the North-East's beleagured car component industry looks set to escape the brunt of supplier job losses.

With Vauxhall taking a high percentage of components from the European Union, its supplier base in the UK appears to be centred at plants local to the Bedfordshire site.

Regional development agency One NorthEast is looking into any knock-on effects for the North-East market, but chief executive Mike Collier appeared hopeful the effect would be minimal.

"We have made extensive enquiries into the effects of the Vauxhall closure on the component industry in the North-East, and as far as we are aware the region is not heavily dependent on the firm," he said.

Earlier this year when the future of the Rover car plant was threatened, One NorthEast chairman Dr John Bridge warned that the North-East faced a one-in-ten cull of automotive industry jobs within 12 months.

The region's car parts industry employs about 20,000 people directly and a further 7,000 in ancillary services.

But Mr Collier added: "Unlike Rover, which relied on the North-East car component industry to a much greater extent, Vauxhall appears to take most of its components from the European market."

One NorthEast is continuing to work with suppliers and regional partners to minimise job losses in the industry, and is awaitingwith interest Nissan's decision on whether the new generation Micra will be built at its Sunderland plant or at Renault's factory in Flins, France.

Mr Collier added: "We are obviously very interested in whatever happens at Nissan, especially with regard to the decision on the new Micra, because of the effect it has on the regional economy.

"But again the Nissan factory is different to Vauxhall, because it is the most productive car plant in Europe."