The group, which also owns Peugeot, Citroen, Fiat and Chrysler, is expected to make a decision on the future of UK production before the end of the year.

A source close to Stellantis said that the £15,000 penalty stipulated under the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate and the absence of EV purchase subsidies for private buyers would be key elements in its decision-making regarding the future of Vauxhall.

While Stellantis expects to reach about 20pc EV sales this year, Carlos Tavares, its chief executive, has said that is double the “natural” extent of demand. Given the disparity, reaching even the current level has “cost a lot,” the source said.

A spokesman for Stellantis said: “We’ve said that we are reviewing our UK operations and that is ongoing.”

The company said it agreed with the broad aims of the ZEV mandate “but not the proposed glidepath to get there”. Eurig Druce, Stellantis’s managing director for the UK, will attend the meeting.

Nissan, the Japanese giant, is also expected to lobby Ms Haigh and Mr Reynolds to soften the Government’s EV policy. Its car plant in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, is the biggest in the UK, employing 6,000 people and supporting 30,000 jobs in the supply chain.

The firm is expected to tell them that the UK car industry is rapidly approaching the point where jobs and competitiveness will be on the line unless the rules are modified.

The warnings come amid speculation that the Government may be prepared to modify the EV quotas to reduce the pressure on the industry, though any changes would require parliamentary approval.

Other options include the restoration of EV subsidies, which continue to spur sales of fleet vehicles.

The Government said it continued to communicate with the automotive industry on the ZEV mandate and would set out more details in due course.