Warning over Christmas shopping supplies as trucker crisis in Britain deepens    

The British haulage industry says it needs about 100,000 more drivers after 25,000 drivers returned to continental Europe before Brexit and the pandemic halted the qualification process for new workers. File picture

Britain's retail industry has warned the UK government that unless it moves to alleviate an acute shortage of truckers in the next 10 days then significant disruption was inevitable in the run-up to Christmas.

As the world's fifth-largest economy emerges from Covid-19 lockdowns, a spike in European natural gas prices and a post-Brexit shortage of truck drivers have left Britain grappling with soaring energy prices and a potential food supply crunch.

BP temporarily closed some of its 1,200 UK petrol stations due to a lack of both unleaded and diesel grades, which it blamed on driver shortages. Esso said a small number of its 200 Tesco Alliance retail sites had also been impacted, while Shell said it was seeing increased demand for fuel at some of its petrol stations as worries over lorry driver shortages sent drivers to fill up their tanks. 

For months, supermarkets, processors and farmers have warned that a shortage of heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers was straining supply chains to breaking point – making it harder to get goods on to shelves.

"HGV drivers are the glue which hold our supply chains together. Without them, we are unable to move goods from farms to warehouses to shops," said Andrew Opie at the British Retail Consortium. 

Unless new drivers are found in the next 10 days, it is inevitable that we will see significant disruption in the run-up to Christmas." 

Hauliers and logistics companies cautioned there were no quick fixes and any change to testing or visas would likely be too late to alleviate the pre-Christmas shortages as retailers stockpile months ahead.

Public urged not to panic-buy

Government ministers urged the public not to panic-buy as some of Britain's biggest supermarkets have warned a shortage of truck drivers could lead to just that ahead of Christmas.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said Johnson, whom he met in New York, had asked him for an "emergency" agreement to supply a food product that is lacking in Britain, though the British embassy disputed President Bolsonaro's account.

"We'll move heaven and earth to do whatever we can to make sure that shortages are alleviated with HGV drivers," said UK transport secretary Grant Shapps. 

A trucking industry body, the Road Haulage Association, has called on the UK government to allow short-term visas for international drivers to enter Britain. The British haulage industry says it needs about 100,000 more drivers after 25,000 drivers returned to continental Europe before Brexit and the pandemic halted the qualification process for new workers.

Growing worries over energy bills, food costs, and tax hikes has prompted a hefty drop in British consumer confidence this month, surveys have shown. 

The GfK Consumer Confidence Index fell and a separate Confederation of British Industry survey of retailers showed sales growth slipped to a six-month low in September after spiking to its highest since 2014 in August. Businesses also said they were worried about running low on stocks of goods. 

• Reuters