Christmas woes continue for the UK
1,500 lorry drivers still stuck in Kent, but UK and France in talks to restart freight.
Britain’s troubled freight industry is continuing to bear the brunt of the 48-hour ban on imports to France from the UK, reports the BBC. More than 1,500 lorries are stuck on the road to the Port of Dover and the prospects for a Christmas at home with loved ones are in the balance for many of the waiting drivers.
The government has implemented what it calls ‘Operation Brock’ and has 650 lorries parked on the hard shoulder of the M25 and another 873 at a local aerodrome that is now functioning as an emergency lorry park.
More than 40 countries have stopped travel from the UK due to fears surrounding the new Corona-19 variant, and the EU is now holding talks on how to devise a united response to the new threat. Home Secretary Priti Patel said testing lorry drivers at ports was “part of the discussions… Getting those tests up and running can happen relatively quickly”.
