The decision to issue 5,000 temporary work visas to truck drivers was taken by the authorities Great Britain, due to supply problems due to Brexit.
These permits for entry and work of third country nationals in Britain, which will be valid from October to December, aim to address the huge shortage of truck drivers and workers in many key sectors of the British economy, such as poultry.
Despite calls from the government not to panic prevailed, long queues formed yesterday for a second day outside gas stations, with many drivers even waiting hours to refuel their vehicles, as oil companies have announced a shortage of tanker drivers, which could cause a disruption in the supply chain. Some gas stations have already closed, while others have set a limit on the amount of fuel that each driver can buy.
At present, London has not complied with the request to deploy an army to assist in the distribution of fuel.
At the same time, the retail industry has warned that, If the problem is not solved with the lack of truck drivers, there will be serious problems in view of the Christmas season, so commercial traffic is increased.
“After 18 very difficult months I know how important this Christmas is for all of us and that is why we are taking these steps as soon as possible to ensure that the preparations go as planned.”, said the British Minister of Transport Grand Saps.
The decision to allow more foreign workers into Britain runs counter to the tough line Prime Minister Boris Johnson has taken since Brexit, whose government insisted that Britain was no longer dependent on foreign workers.
For months, London has been trying to avoid having to resort to this measure despite warnings from representatives of many sectors of the economy and the shortage of an estimated 100,000 truck drivers.
In addition to issuing temporary visas to foreign drivers, The British government has taken other emergency measures to secure the market before Christmas, according to Saps.
For this reason, the examiners of the Ministry of Defense will mobilize to give exams and obtain a driving license for thousands of people in the coming days.
The Ministry of Education and its services will release millions of pounds to train 4,000 truck drivers by setting up new training centers to speed up the process.
At the same time, the government is sending a million letters to all those who have a heavy vehicle driver’s license but are no longer working, asking them to return to work.
The British government has warned, however, that the measures are a short-term solution, and in the long run companies will have to hire more British drivers and offer them better working conditions and wages.
“We are acting now, but also the industries need to be involved in the effort by continuing to improve working conditions and offer the right wages to keep new drivers.”.
“Visas are not enough”
However the British Freight Association (RHA) estimates that 100,000 truck drivers are missing from the country, because many workers left the sector, but also because of the effects of Brexit and the covid-19 pandemic due to which the training and examinations for new truck drivers were stopped for about a year.
For her part, the president of the British Chamber of Commerce Ruby McGregor-Smith commented that the visas announced by the government “are not enough” and that “They are not enough to solve such a large-scale problem.”
“It’s like they want to put out a fire with a glass of water,” he said.
Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the British Retail Federation, also warned London’s plans were inadequate, warning on Friday that the government had ten days to address the shortage of truck drivers.
“The 5,000 visa limit will do little to tackle the current shortage”, stressed Opie. “Supermarkets alone have estimated that they need at least 15,000 truck drivers to be able to operate at their full capacity in the run-up to Christmas and avoid disruption (of the supply chain) or product availability problems.”.
Others point out that European truck drivers may not want to work in Britain.
“I expect many drivers will not return to Britain even if their government allows it”, commented Marco Dizioa, Secretary General of the European Product Transport Guides Association.
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