• UK petrol stations have been closing one after the other for the past few days.

  • A shortage that begins to panic the kingdom, which is seriously considering requisitioning the army to supply the population.

  • Containment and Brexit would have led the country to this situation.

A potential intervention of the army, scenes of chaos and confusion, numerous appeals for calm from the government, panicked and tense crowds… The gasoline shortage in the United Kingdom, an unexpected consequence of Brexit, is becoming increasingly common. no longer feel and never stops worrying across the Channel.

According to the PRA, one of the associations of fuel distributors, up to two-thirds of its members (5,500 independent sites out of a total of 8,000 stations in the country), were out of fuel on Sunday, "the others almost dried up ".

As a result, queues of several hours sometimes are created in front of gas stations, caregivers and other essential trades fear a lack of gasoline for their professions, and the army is ready to intervene on Monday to help with refueling. .

What happened to bring the world's sixth power to such chaos?

20 Minutes

takes stock.

Where does this gasoline shortage come from?

Initially, it is a lack of truck drivers who are no longer there to deliver gasoline to refineries. The Road Haulage Association (RHA) estimates that the UK needs around 100,000 more truck drivers. This lack of manpower is, according to UK Transport Minister Grant Shapps, "primarily" due to the coronavirus pandemic. Due to the multiple confinements and the need to stay at home, the training centers for new drivers have remained closed. According to the BBC, 40,000 driver training tests have been canceled due to the pandemic.

Brexit has also played a role in this shortage of truck drivers: with immigration procedures much more complex than before, truck drivers from the European Union are now reluctant to work in the UK, while others have left the country following Brexit. The role of the divorce between Brussels and London is nevertheless subject to controversy. For the RHA, Brexit deprived the UK of 20,000 European drivers. An opinion that does not share the Minister of Transport, on the contrary: "Thanks to Brexit, I was able to change the law and modify the way in which driving tests work, in a way that I could not have done. in place if we were still part of the EU. "

A defense that leaves Éric Pichet, professor of economics and finance, and economist at the Kedge Business School skeptical: “Such a phenomenon is only seen in the United Kingdom, while Italy and France have also experienced multiple confinements.

Especially since the lack of foreign labor is felt in all British sectors, but it is most visible in the fuel sector.

"

Is there really a fuel shortage?

The crisis started in the middle of last week after the leak of a confidential report from BP, one of the gasoline giants in the United Kingdom.

The report, intended for the government, described only a few dozen gas stations that were closing for lack of fuel.

Made public, this report created panic and massive purchases of the population, creating a vicious circle: the more the population bought gasoline for fear of shortage, the more the service stations closed, and the more the population was afraid of running out. and was going to buy gasoline.

“The refueling of service stations works just in time.

When things go wrong, the whole gear goes wrong and the situation can quickly degenerate into something irrecoverable, ”notes Éric Pichet.

Will the situation improve?

The situation should already recover a little on its own in the days to come, hope the government and the PRA, when panic purchases will no longer take place and gasoline will return to normal consumption.

However, according to BP, the return to total normality will not happen immediately: it will take time for the sector to strengthen deliveries and replenish stocks.

"

Regarding the shortage of truck drivers, London resolved on Saturday to amend its post-Brexit immigration policy and grant up to 10,500 three-month work visas, contrasting with Boris Johnson's policy since European divorce.

The British Prime Minister initially wanted the island to do without foreign labor and strengthen the conditions for working in the United Kingdom.

Can such a problem happen in France?

Since France is not affected by Brexit, the risk is much lower.

“Certainly, there may have been a lack of training as a truck driver, but without the losses of foreign drivers in addition, the situation seems manageable.

And France will be able to call on European foreign labor much more easily ”, supports Éric Pichet.

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  • Fuel

  • Gasoline

  • UK

  • Coronavirus

  • Brexit

  • World