(CN) — Brexit is back with a vengeance: Closed gas stations, rising fuel prices, worries over inflation, too few workers and, soon, livestock may go to waste.
The United Kingdom, the world’s fifth largest economy, is in the midst of an economic, social and political storm many see as a consequence of Brexit compounded by the coronavirus pandemic and turmoil in global markets caused by supply chain disruptions, inflation and rising energy prices.
For the past eight days, Britain has been the scene of closed gas stations, long lines at the stations with enough fuel to stay open, scuffles breaking out between frustrated drivers and reports of essential workers, such as hospital staff and taxi drivers, unable to make it to work because they didn’t have fuel for their cars.
This week, up to a half of Britain’s 8,000 stations were closed and by Friday the situation remained critical with many stations still closed and others allowing drivers to buy only up to 30 pounds worth of fuel. A government minister warned of another week of hardship.
What’s the problem? There simply aren’t enough truck drivers to deliver all the fuel the country needs.
The loss of about 20,000 non-British European drivers since Brexit came into effect in early 2020 is partly to blame. Besides that, the licensing of new drivers was largely shut down during pandemic lockdowns and the industry now says it needs about 100,000 new drivers.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson — coming under fire even within his own Tory party — is scrambling to solve the crisis.
As one stop-gap measure, he’s called upon the army to help, but the British military says it has only about 150 soldiers capable of driving fuel trucks.
Johnson is banking on European truck drivers to come to Britain’s aid too. His government is offering 5,000 temporary work visas to foreign truck drivers to fill the gap. In the meantime, the government is talking about training ex-prisoners to become drivers.
All of this has Brits remembering the so-called “winter of discontent” between 1978-1979 when long lines formed outside gas stations over fears of a supply crisis. The 1970s in Britain were marked by low growth and rising prices. Fears of stagflation are returning.
The fuel crisis exploded after a report emerged about an BP oil executive expressing concerns over a possible shortage in drivers forcing a few of the company’s 1,200 stations to close.
That prompted a panic and Brits rushed out to fill up their vehicles, jerry cans and even plastic bottles. The result was pandemonium: The nation’s fuel stocks quickly started to run dry.
About one million European Union nationals have left the U.K. since Brexit, with many returning home during the pandemic and finding it hard to return. Many Brexit supporters voted to leave the EU in order to tighten immigration and Johnson’s conservative government has done just that.
The exodus of EU nationals isn’t just hitting the trucking industry.
One of the hardest hit areas is the food sector. It is warning that there simply aren’t enough field hands and other workers, such as butchers, available to keep the normal flow of food going. On Friday, pig farmers warned that they might have to cull about 150,000 pigs because of a shortage of butchers.
Bottlenecks in the supply chain are causing major problems too. Chickens have been in short supply, pubs have had problems keeping enough beer on stock, McDonald’s fast-food restaurants stopped offering milkshakes and makers of fizzy drinks are scrambling because of a lack of carbon dioxide. Supplies of some medicines have been affected too.
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