Quietly, though, ministers will be working on contingency plans that would involve soldiers being drafted in to deliver fuel. Petrol disruption will fuel fears of new winter of discontent. Oil companies are rationing deliveries of petrol and diesel to UK garage forecourts because of driver shortages. UK petrol stations warn of fuel shortages due to lack of HGV drivers.
Read more. Transport minister Grant Shapps had earlier appealed for calm, saying the shortages were purely caused by panic buying, and that the situation would eventually resolve itself because fuel could not be stockpiled.
Drivers queue to enter a fuel station in London, Britain, September 25, N said in a joint statement issued by the business department that they had been reassured, and stressed there was no national fuel shortage.
Earlier, Shapps said the shortage of truck drivers was down to COVID disrupting the qualification process, preventing new labour from entering the market. He said the low number of applicants reflected a "global" issue causing "a particular problem in the UK".
He blamed long-standing underinvestment in pay and driver facilities. Separately, about Army and RAF personnel - including drivers - will help deliver fuel to forecourts in the hardest-hit areas, including London and south-east England. They have been given training in safety procedures, equipment and forecourt driving manoeuvres.
However, the government hasn't announced plans to prioritise key workers as it did with nursery and school places during the pandemic.
The government has powers to limit how much fuel drivers can buy, and the hours when they can buy it, but hasn't used them so far.
On 23 September, BP warned it would have to "temporarily" close a handful of its petrol stations , because of a lack of drivers. Long queues started to build up outside stations across Great Britain in the following days, amid fears that fuel might run out. Oil companies have stressed there is plenty of petrol available. However, the key issue is there aren't enough drivers to deliver it to forecourts. There's an estimated shortage of more than , HGV drivers, which has already caused problems for a range of retailers - from supermarkets to fast food chains.
Contact us Sign up for newsletters. Log In Register now My account. What happened during the fuel crisis of and why the shortages are very different this time around Memories of the dark days of the September fuel shortage is contributing to panic buying at the pumps. By Aasma Day. September 24, pm Updated September 25, am.
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