The minister said BMW's decision to move production of Minis to China was unfortunate.
The House of Lords was told by Baroness Vere that the carmaker had not consulted her department before announcing that it would be closing its plant in Oxford.
She was not worried about the future of electric car production in the UK.
The home of the Mini will be Oxford, and no jobs will be lost, according to BMW.
The Mini Cooper three-door and five-door Hatch models will be made at the plant.
The UK will no longer allow the sale of new cars and vans powered by petrol and diesel.
Baroness Vere said that the Department for Transport had not had any discussions with BMW about the Mini being made in China.
Some companies will come into the market and some will leave.
She said that they are not concerned at the moment.
The UK is determined to remain one of the best locations in the world for automotive manufacturing as we transition to electric vehicles.
The commercial affairs of private companies are not commented on by us. We work with a number of manufacturers in the auto sector.
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