Panic buying fuel

Have you been an panic bought fuel today?

  • Yes

    Votes: 1 1.3%
  • No

    Votes: 76 98.7%

  • Total voters
    77
  • Poll closed .

bluewolf

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Brief answer...

Continental jounrnies are often shorter and overnight facilities much better on the occasions where a layover is needed. Industrial zones more concentrated etc

There's more to it than that but I've a feeling most readers will gave dozed off!
I understand what you’re saying, but wasn’t that the case last year, and the 30 before that?
 
D

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Are they having the same issues the mainland UK is having?
I understand that they are experiencing some problems but I admit I do not know to what extent.

My point was more to do with our problems being far more to do with longstanding issues for HGV drivers and the transport industry in general. Many of those issues pre-date Brexit by years.

But it seems for some the current problem is just another opportunity to fight a battle that has long since been lost.
 

bluewolf

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I understand that they are experiencing some problems but I admit I do not know to what extent.

My point was more to do with our problems being far more to do with longstanding issues for HGV drivers and the transport industry in general. Many of those issues pre-date Brexit by years.

But it seems for some the current problem is just another opportunity to fight a battle that has long since been lost.
I agree that there were longstanding issues all across Europe, but B (and the language/behaviour of some who should know better) has certainly made things worse. My minor irritation (for another thread) is those who ignore this and say that B has not been a major contributing factor ?
 

SocketRocket

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Likewise claiming that it has nothing at all to do with government statements or Brexit is disingenuous.
The handful of stations with delivery shortages was a recruitment, training and poor working condition issue. Thats a problem caused by employers who have relied for too long on an inexhaustible supply of cheap labour. It's not governments job to set pay and conditions for employers (other than minimum wage rates) and it's disingenuous to think otherwise.
 
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I agree that there were longstanding issues all across Europe, but B (and the language/behaviour of some who should know better) has certainly made things worse. My minor irritation (for another thread) is those who ignore this and say that B has not been a major contributing factor ?
I must admit to being one of those who does not see B as being a MAJOR factor.

Yes some drivers returned home due to uncertainty and some also returned who had always intended to.

Some also found themselves affected by COVID.

However, the numbers represent very much a minority of our general shortage of HGV drivers and even smaller proportion of the shortage of qualified tanker drivers.

Blaming the B word may result in attention being drawn away from the far greater problem surrounding terms and conditions which have made the job such an unattractive proposition.
 

SocketRocket

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I agree that there were longstanding issues all across Europe, but B (and the language/behaviour of some who should know better) has certainly made things worse. My minor irritation (for another thread) is those who ignore this and say that B has not been a major contributing factor ?
It hasn't been. It's a contributing factor as I've stated previously due to the industry being reliant on labour from poorer countries, the major factor has been a lack of investment in training, pay and working conditions, just like a number of other employment sectors.
 
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drdel

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I understand what you’re saying, but wasn’t that the case last year, and the 30 before that?

Yup the vulnerability has been there: eg. French port chaos for years, ferries and bad weather etc have bigger impacts as the supply chains have become leaner with very little contingency (stock).

Of coursee the pandemic hit logistics internationally and then the surge as some sort of normaility returns. The changes in port procedures from Brexit added t the complexity but it aint the biggest impact. Its a question of lots of relatively small impactshappening simultaneously.

The easy things is to blame 'the 'Government' but this is a multi-faceted issue across the developed countries with stuff llike China's exchange rate rigging making its exports unrealsitically cheaper so distorting the sourcing and supplyy chain nodes.
 

drdel

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I think YOU are letting your politics come into it. The factors you cite are all factors which were exacerbated by the lunacy of You Know What. The rest of the EU and NI do not have this problem. It beggars belief that it is a UK only problem unconnected with Brexit. The fixes proposed by Govt Ministers reveal the truth.

My statements are personal opinions based upon some economics, business and subject knowledge. You could try ' avoiding the arrogant put downs by being less strident and concentrate on having an unemotional and sensible debate. The EU and Ireland have the same vulnerabilities but the nature of their business volume, industry demographics and population density come into play.
 

Swinglowandslow

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Likewise claiming that it has nothing at all to do with government statements or Brexit is disingenuous.

No, it is not. What government statement precipitated this fuel problem?
It is clear to anyone without a gun pointing at Westminster that the crisis was caused by panic buying which was encouraged by media coverage.
 

bluewolf

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Yup the vulnerability has been there: eg. French port chaos for years, ferries and bad weather etc have bigger impacts as the supply chains have become leaner with very little contingency (stock).

Of coursee the pandemic hit logistics internationally and then the surge as some sort of normaility returns. The changes in port procedures from Brexit added t the complexity but it aint the biggest impact. Its a question of lots of relatively small impactshappening simultaneously.

The easy things is to blame 'the 'Government' but this is a multi-faceted issue across the developed countries with stuff llike China's exchange rate rigging making its exports unrealsitically cheaper so distorting the sourcing and supplyy chain nodes.
Having been a recent victim of excessive logistics delays due to the Suez issue and weather delays, I do fully agree that these have been major driving factors in localised delays. However, to dismiss the almost instant and significant impact of brexit on the supply chains of mainland UK appears politically motivated.
I’m sure we’d find a large amount of common ground on the logistics issue, but we’ll most likely never agree on the impact that brexit had, is having, and will have when the WA is actually implemented in full ?

Anyway, this discussion has strayed into political territory and will most likely result in the end of the world as we know it. I’m therefore going to recuse myself and head out for a nice weekend in the Lakes, with some hearty food, great ales and maybe even a walk or two if the rain ever stops ?
 
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Old Skier

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It's ironic that Poland has a shortage of HGV drivers as severe as the UK, at least proportionately, even after so many drivers have, according to some on here, returned home due to Brexit.

And Germany has problems along with other EU States.

But we hear that people queuing for £10 of fuel that they don't need are behaving rationally and the problem is entirely of the Government's making.

No no, you know it’s not a problem in the EU, a poster said it’s so. You shouldn’t believe in information coming from Europe.
 

Old Skier

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Shortfall of drivers in Germany 60,000
In France 45,000
Italy 15-20,000

Are these difficulties due to Britain leaving the EU?
Let’s not let the facts get in the way now.

Funny how we were accepting the “expert” information provided in the Covid thread but when someone has the cheek to post an informative post on this subject on the facts behind the shortage of drivers world wide it is dismissed out of hand by someone with no knowledge on the subject.
 
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Having been a recent victim of excessive logistics delays due to the Suez issue and weather delays, I do fully agree that these have been major driving factors in localised delays. However, to dismiss the almost instant and significant impact of brexit on the supply chains of mainland UK appears politically motivated.
I’m sure we’d find a large amount of common ground on the logistics issue, but we’ll most likely never agree on the impact that brexit had, is having, and will have when the WA is actually implemented in full ?

Anyway, this discussion has strayed into political territory and will most likely result in the end of the world as we know it. I’m therefore going to recuse myself and head out for a nice weekend in the Lakes, with some hearty food, great ales and maybe even a walk or two if the rain ever stops ?
I agree with much of what you say regarding the difficulties created by Brexit for imported and exported goods and raw materials.

However, the current problems with fuel distribution are almost exclusively of UK origin.

After all it is generally accepted that there is no shortage of fuel in the country. The problem lies with getting it to the filling stations.

A small part of that may be due to some delivery drivers being affected by Brexit but far more it is down to poor management of the distribution process.

Anyway I agree that further debate could take this in the "wrong " direction. More importantly I hope you succeed in finding some good ales , fine food and have a great weekend in the Lakes. ?the weather is kind to you.
 

pauljames87

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My drive home takes 45 on a good day hour on a bad day

However since this fuel crazyness today was 1 hour 20 mins and been hour and 10 most days

Just to get round the queues
 
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