The UK military is on standby to deliver gasoline to service stations after a shortage of tanker drivers forced some to close last week, triggering a spate of panic buying by British motorists.
With thousands of service stations having since run dry, Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government has announced a series of emergency measures to address the fuel crisis, including issuing temporary work visas for up to 5,500 foreign truck drivers and suspending competition law to allow suppliers to deliver fuel to rival operators.
The government said late on Monday that British Army tanker drivers had been “brought to a state of readiness” and could be used to deliver fuel where it is needed most.
“If required, the deployment of military personnel will provide the supply chain with additional capacity as a temporary measure to help ease pressures caused by spikes in localized demand for fuel,” UK Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said in a statement.
The Automobile Association (AA) appealed for calm on Friday after BP (BP) was forced to temporarily close some of its stations for the second time in as many months because of the driver shortage. Yet many Brits paid little heed, flocking to service stations in hopes of securing fuel for the week ahead.
Why is the UK experiencing a fuel shortage?
“The only reason we don’t have petrol on the forecourts is that people are buying petrol they don’t need,” Environment Secretary George Eustice said.
But the increased demand has caused a squeeze on immediate supply, which has been exacerbated by the fact that the UK has long had a shortage of Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) drivers.
There just aren’t enough people to drive the trucks that distribute fuel across Britain.
According to the Petrol Retailers Association, which represents about 60 per cent of the UK’s fuel sellers, between 50 and 90 per cent of pumps ran dry in some areas.
It’s got to the point that the government is considering using the army to deliver petrol to stations.(WithinputsfromCNN)