The warning from the carmaker’s chief executive Carlos Ghosn follows a promise by British prime minister David Cameron that a referendum will be held on EU members if the Conservative party wins the next general election.

Mr Ghosn said: ‘If anything has to change we would need to reconsider our strategy and our investments for the future.’

But he added that he considered such an exit unlikely.

Nissan’s plant in Sunderland is the biggest-ever plant in the UK, producing more than 500,000 cars a year. The Qashqai is the main vehicle produced at the factory, along with the new Note, Juke crossover and LEAF electric vehicle.