It is of course the demand for cheap labour from the EU to depress UK wages
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Definitely more to this petrol shortage than panic. Service stations that had fuel are now empty again. A genuine supply chain problem.
Not around here
I wonder if any disruption is regional based upon customer behaviour, or brand-related based on a company being incompetent?
No hint of any issues anymore here. No queues, no disruption.
Seems you cannot say that without being accused of being I am alright Jack
Or a Sellers out?
Incidentally, still disruption round here with Rugeley affected although Cannock itself seems OK.
I recall the same posters claiming the fuel supply issue was over exactly seven days ago are saying it is over once again, seven days later. I suspect this time they may only be a few days away from being more or less correct.
Rock on Boris, great work, you smashed it!
I said it would be over by Wednesday.
Apart from BP and/or London Remoaners it seems it was and I stand by that.
Aberdeenshire says hi. Aberdeenshire also says STFU.
According to @DavidL maybe you should go to Dundee where there are not only no problems, but there haven't been any
Dundee is a hundred miles away. That's like you driving to Buxton to fill up.
Small work question - what do you call a construction of two semi-detached houses? The German is Eigenheim, but "own home" is a false friend and I'm not sure there is an English term for it.
My modest proposal for solving the problem of queues at petrol stations: a £30 minimum spend so that only those who actually need to fill up will do so.
The only problem is, what do you do when somebody fills up with £20? Still charge them £30? That would be - courageous.
There is already a £5 minimum at most garages I think: just change it to £30.
So yes, tell people that they will be charged at least £30. If they need less than that, why are they in the queue?
If the root cause of the problem is that there is in fact an ongoing supply shortage, and not just panic buying, measures to maximise demand could be counterproductive.
Why would it maximise demand? The idea is to stop people who don’t need fuel now from getting it until they do.
I understand that. The risk is that people who would be happy to take £10 or £20 will up their purchases to £30 instead, which at face value is what that measure says.
Which is an issue if the root cause of the problem is inadequate supply rather than purely panic buying.
The interesting part of that linked story is that Boris also says cases are not getting to court quickly enough. The Ministry of Justice has just revealed the crown court backlog is at an all-time high, up to two years for some cases. (Admittedly, all-time means since 2014 when records began.) https://uk.news.yahoo.com/backlog-crown-court-criminal-cases-172331708.html
Oh FFS! The Tory government has repeatedly cut the budget for the criminal justice system. Boris voted for this every single time. That is why there are such delays. The situation was dire long before Covid. In many cases trials are being set for 3 or 4 years after the crimes. Crocodile tears on his part
On Cressida Dick, something occurred to me this morning. I wonder if the reason she’s still got a job is because there isn’t a woman available to replace her. Let’s be honest, they can’t appoint a man to sort this out, can they?
There are a number of senior policewomen around. Quite a few have been interviewed in recent days. And some seem to be ex-police women, which tells you something.
Personally, I've had it with tokenism. Get the best person in - someone who really understands the need for change. Get sensible female advisors. What needs to happen to the police - as I've bored everyone here senseless with - is far wider than the Everard case.
The delays in criminal justice are themselves a major source of inefficiency. So many trials are postponed and put off when witnesses have been inconvenienced. Cops are less bothered than most because they claim overtime. I regularly ask cops to attend at, say, 2.00pm but they are there by 10 to get well paid sitting in waiting rooms.
A good example of the alternative was the sentence appeal court in Scotland. The Lord President really got a grip of that and massively accelerated the process. The result was that those who appealed were much less likely to get bail. And, therefore, much less likely to appeal. The Appeal court was also not presented with endless cases where the defence were able to argue, yes he has been a very naughty boy but he's kept his nose clean in the last 2 years/now got a young child/ even got a job.
Speed up trials and there will be more pleas.
Reading about the court and justice system depresses me, as while money doesn't solve all problems in the world, it does seem that adequately funding and resourcing the courts and lawyers pays for itself with improved efficiency, on top of being important for justice purposes. It just seems to be such a false economy for the government to have cut back so much.
No votes in the criminal justice system other than making noises about "monsters" and "life should mean life", I think this is a big part of why it's been neglected. It's a populist age and this is reflected in political rhetoric and priorities.
Fantastic, not enough Sunak and Boris are engaging in traditional PM-Chancellor power tugging, without having the rest of them at it too.
That's part of why Truss got promoted.
Before the reshuffle, Rishi was the sole heir apparent. Now there are two, and to an extent that means they cancel each other out. That strengthens BoJo.
I'm sure C. Northcote Parkinson had something to say about this. Whatever else he does/doesn't understand, BoJo understands power.
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
Definitely more to this petrol shortage than panic. Service stations that had fuel are now empty again. A genuine supply chain problem.
Not around here
I wonder if any disruption is regional based upon customer behaviour, or brand-related based on a company being incompetent?
No hint of any issues anymore here. No queues, no disruption.
Seems you cannot say that without being accused of being I am alright Jack
Or a Sellers out?
Incidentally, still disruption round here with Rugeley affected although Cannock itself seems OK.
I recall the same posters claiming the fuel supply issue was over exactly seven days ago are saying it is over once again, seven days later. I suspect this time they may only be a few days away from being more or less correct.
Rock on Boris, great work, you smashed it!
I said it would be over by Wednesday.
Apart from BP and/or London Remoaners it seems it was and I stand by that.
Aberdeenshire says hi. Aberdeenshire also says STFU.
According to @DavidL maybe you should go to Dundee where there are not only no problems, but there haven't been any
Dundee is a hundred miles away. That's like you driving to Buxton to fill up.
The Press and Journal report today on the army deployment and say that countless petrol stations including some in Aberdeen and the North East had their pumps run dry as they tried to meet demand
Note some
You'll also note that in rural Aberdeenshire petrol stations are quite well spread out. It's not like living in a town that has three or a city that has thirty. If your nearest two are empty, you could easily end up having driven fifty miles with nothing to show for it.
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Oh don't be a f***ing dingbat!
So you want to stick people nailed down to the floor of minimum wage? Have you ever considered that minimum wage is supposed to be a minimum not a maximum?
The interesting part of that linked story is that Boris also says cases are not getting to court quickly enough. The Ministry of Justice has just revealed the crown court backlog is at an all-time high, up to two years for some cases. (Admittedly, all-time means since 2014 when records began.) https://uk.news.yahoo.com/backlog-crown-court-criminal-cases-172331708.html
Oh FFS! The Tory government has repeatedly cut the budget for the criminal justice system. Boris voted for this every single time. That is why there are such delays. The situation was dire long before Covid. In many cases trials are being set for 3 or 4 years after the crimes. Crocodile tears on his part
On Cressida Dick, something occurred to me this morning. I wonder if the reason she’s still got a job is because there isn’t a woman available to replace her. Let’s be honest, they can’t appoint a man to sort this out, can they?
There are a number of senior policewomen around. Quite a few have been interviewed in recent days. And some seem to be ex-police women, which tells you something.
Personally, I've had it with tokenism. Get the best person in - someone who really understands the need for change. Get sensible female advisors. What needs to happen to the police - as I've bored everyone here senseless with - is far wider than the Everard case.
The delays in criminal justice are themselves a major source of inefficiency. So many trials are postponed and put off when witnesses have been inconvenienced. Cops are less bothered than most because they claim overtime. I regularly ask cops to attend at, say, 2.00pm but they are there by 10 to get well paid sitting in waiting rooms.
A good example of the alternative was the sentence appeal court in Scotland. The Lord President really got a grip of that and massively accelerated the process. The result was that those who appealed were much less likely to get bail. And, therefore, much less likely to appeal. The Appeal court was also not presented with endless cases where the defence were able to argue, yes he has been a very naughty boy but he's kept his nose clean in the last 2 years/now got a young child/ even got a job.
Speed up trials and there will be more pleas.
Reading about the court and justice system depresses me, as while money doesn't solve all problems in the world, it does seem that adequately funding and resourcing the courts and lawyers pays for itself with improved efficiency, on top of being important for justice purposes. It just seems to be such a false economy for the government to have cut back so much.
No votes in the criminal justice system other than making noises about "monsters" and "life should mean life", I think this is a big part of why it's been neglected. It's a populist age and this is reflected in political rhetoric and priorities.
And that's why the British state is gradually shrinking towards an NHS, a pension system and a national flagship. There just aren't votes in spending on anything else.
Small work question - what do you call a construction of two semi-detached houses? The German is Eigenheim, but "own home" is a false friend and I'm not sure there is an English term for it.
Others have suggested duplex, but that seems to mean two flats rather than two houses (e.g. one above the other).
i think a duplex usually refers to an apartment on more than one floor, rather than 2 separate dwellings.
Small work question - what do you call a construction of two semi-detached houses? The German is Eigenheim, but "own home" is a false friend and I'm not sure there is an English term for it.
Others have suggested duplex, but that seems to mean two flats rather than two houses (e.g. one above the other).
Isn't that a maisonette?
Wouldn’t a maisonette be a flat on more than one floor, but not all of the floors of the building? I am guessing at this point though.
I live in a duplex - that is a flat which covers 2 stories ( I have an upstairs and a downstairs). A maisonette is usually a semi detached house divided into 2 levels each with a separate entrance.
The interesting part of that linked story is that Boris also says cases are not getting to court quickly enough. The Ministry of Justice has just revealed the crown court backlog is at an all-time high, up to two years for some cases. (Admittedly, all-time means since 2014 when records began.) https://uk.news.yahoo.com/backlog-crown-court-criminal-cases-172331708.html
Oh FFS! The Tory government has repeatedly cut the budget for the criminal justice system. Boris voted for this every single time. That is why there are such delays. The situation was dire long before Covid. In many cases trials are being set for 3 or 4 years after the crimes. Crocodile tears on his part
On Cressida Dick, something occurred to me this morning. I wonder if the reason she’s still got a job is because there isn’t a woman available to replace her. Let’s be honest, they can’t appoint a man to sort this out, can they?
There are a number of senior policewomen around. Quite a few have been interviewed in recent days. And some seem to be ex-police women, which tells you something.
Personally, I've had it with tokenism. Get the best person in - someone who really understands the need for change. Get sensible female advisors. What needs to happen to the police - as I've bored everyone here senseless with - is far wider than the Everard case.
The delays in criminal justice are themselves a major source of inefficiency. So many trials are postponed and put off when witnesses have been inconvenienced. Cops are less bothered than most because they claim overtime. I regularly ask cops to attend at, say, 2.00pm but they are there by 10 to get well paid sitting in waiting rooms.
A good example of the alternative was the sentence appeal court in Scotland. The Lord President really got a grip of that and massively accelerated the process. The result was that those who appealed were much less likely to get bail. And, therefore, much less likely to appeal. The Appeal court was also not presented with endless cases where the defence were able to argue, yes he has been a very naughty boy but he's kept his nose clean in the last 2 years/now got a young child/ even got a job.
Speed up trials and there will be more pleas.
Reading about the court and justice system depresses me, as while money doesn't solve all problems in the world, it does seem that adequately funding and resourcing the courts and lawyers pays for itself with improved efficiency, on top of being important for justice purposes. It just seems to be such a false economy for the government to have cut back so much.
Unfortunately, that's the situation in most parts of government. As a nation, we get what we pay for and overall, we're not paying enough. Because governments don't get elected by charging enough.
This isn't new, by the way. Some of my formative politics was in a patch where "vote Labour for lower (council house) rents" was a potent slogan. So every year, said houses got a bit shabbier...
I don't know the way out of this.
Not helped in justice by not wanting to pay for things like legal aid as it helps the 'wrong' people.
I don't see a way out of this either. I think ultimately in this country at least when we are faced with the options of paying more for a better service (and yes there has been plenty of waste trimmed) or settling for a crappier service at less cost, we will go for the latter every time.
One problem is that the needs and funding are all dealt with at random and bit by bit.
For example does the DHSC, the medical profession, the NHS's finance chiefs and the treasury ever sit down and ask "How much would it cost to have what the medical profession would regard as a proper NHS?" And don't stop until they have agreed an answer.
Small work question - what do you call a construction of two semi-detached houses? The German is Eigenheim, but "own home" is a false friend and I'm not sure there is an English term for it.
A brace of semis (pending ratification by TSE).
Ah, that takes me back to my boarding school days.
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Insult those who have a different view then and add to their support
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
Small work question - what do you call a construction of two semi-detached houses? The German is Eigenheim, but "own home" is a false friend and I'm not sure there is an English term for it.
I don't think there is a term, since you need at least two to make it be semi detached in the first place. Duplex? An americanism I think, not sure if it differs.
I think there's an important distinction between two residences on one property (duplex) and where a single construction spans two properties (semi-detached)
Definitely more to this petrol shortage than panic. Service stations that had fuel are now empty again. A genuine supply chain problem.
Not around here
I wonder if any disruption is regional based upon customer behaviour, or brand-related based on a company being incompetent?
No hint of any issues anymore here. No queues, no disruption.
Ah, Mr Thompson - the man confidently asserting that the Government's temporary visa scheme wouldn't be extended - when today it already has!
I don't recall confidently asserting it wouldn't be. I do recall saying it was all meaningless media fluff for the media's benefit - which it is - do you really think 5,000 visas is a gamechanger economically?
You also asserted the fuel crisis was more-or-less over by last Saturday evening/Sunday morning. I believe you assured us that as everyone had a full tank the need for panic buying was over, and diveries would catch up quickly. I pointed out an issue with a finite supply of vehicles and drivers, which you dismissed.
Remind me never to take betting tips from you!
If I get another tip like Sunak at 200/1 (or 250/1 with odds boost) then if you wish to miss out on that, that's on you. 🤷♂️
You know how I feel about "on you", Philip. It has a chippy, slightly playground vibe to it. There's rarely a need for it and especially not in a bantering post such as this. Much better would be the standard "up to you".
"If you wish to miss out on that, that's up to you." Like that. Or, if you want some edge to it you could say, "that's entirely up to you".
I wonder why London seems to be the one place where the media-invented panic is still ongoing?
Is it because London is full of FBPE Remoaners? Or because London is full of the media?
Or both.
How exactly do you think the media are preventing petrol stations being supplied? Your foolish Brexit is going to end up with petrol rationing before the end of the year.
Small work question - what do you call a construction of two semi-detached houses? The German is Eigenheim, but "own home" is a false friend and I'm not sure there is an English term for it.
What context?
Normally it would be "pair of semi-detached houses" (likes shoes, one on its own is incomplete, and the two are both separate and interdependent) or perhaps "two semi-detached houses", though the latter misses the relationship.
My modest proposal for solving the problem of queues at petrol stations: a £30 minimum spend so that only those who actually need to fill up will do so.
The problem with that is you have a lot of drivers in the system who only fill up when they actually need to do so - but only put £10 or £20 in when they do.
Not everyone fills their tank. Indeed its less fuel efficient if you do so this is quite deliberate for a lot of people.
I assume you are saying it’s more fuel efficient to run with less petrol in the car due to the weight reduction? Not going to do the maths, but 20 litres of fuel weighs less than 20 kg vs a car that must be over 1000 kg even without passengers. Percentage wise it’s tiny, and nothing like the difference seen in say a jumbo jet. I doubt the difference in fuel economy could be measured in normal use.
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Insult those who have a different view then and add to their support
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
I think Scott's program of government is "we wouldn't have got rid of them in the first place". Which is a fair point.
I think Scott's program of government is "we wouldn't have got rid of them in the first place". Which is a fair point.
Now that we have irrefutable evidence of the impact of taking migrant and immigrant workers out of the economy, how about we take a crack at seeing what happens when we take all the MPs who voted for #BREXIT out of Parliament at the earliest possible opportunity? https://twitter.com/HardenStance/status/1444215094502739968
It is of course the demand for cheap labour from the EU to depress UK wages
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
That seems to be where the rhetoric is shifting. It depends on people not noticing the actual shortages
I wonder why London seems to be the one place where the media-invented panic is still ongoing?
Is it because London is full of FBPE Remoaners? Or because London is full of the media?
Or both.
How exactly do you think the media are preventing petrol stations being supplied? Your foolish Brexit is going to end up with petrol rationing before the end of the year.
Petrol stations are being supplied. As much as you like to whinge and invent issues.
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
The Queen opening Holyrood live on Sky meeting Nicola and fellow politicians with lots of Union Jack's being waved by the crowds around Holyrood is rather amusing
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Insult those who have a different view then and add to their support
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
You should be pleased as your decision to vote remain has been completely vindicated by events such as this.
The interesting part of that linked story is that Boris also says cases are not getting to court quickly enough. The Ministry of Justice has just revealed the crown court backlog is at an all-time high, up to two years for some cases. (Admittedly, all-time means since 2014 when records began.) https://uk.news.yahoo.com/backlog-crown-court-criminal-cases-172331708.html
Oh FFS! The Tory government has repeatedly cut the budget for the criminal justice system. Boris voted for this every single time. That is why there are such delays. The situation was dire long before Covid. In many cases trials are being set for 3 or 4 years after the crimes. Crocodile tears on his part
On Cressida Dick, something occurred to me this morning. I wonder if the reason she’s still got a job is because there isn’t a woman available to replace her. Let’s be honest, they can’t appoint a man to sort this out, can they?
There are a number of senior policewomen around. Quite a few have been interviewed in recent days. And some seem to be ex-police women, which tells you something.
Personally, I've had it with tokenism. Get the best person in - someone who really understands the need for change. Get sensible female advisors. What needs to happen to the police - as I've bored everyone here senseless with - is far wider than the Everard case.
The delays in criminal justice are themselves a major source of inefficiency. So many trials are postponed and put off when witnesses have been inconvenienced. Cops are less bothered than most because they claim overtime. I regularly ask cops to attend at, say, 2.00pm but they are there by 10 to get well paid sitting in waiting rooms.
A good example of the alternative was the sentence appeal court in Scotland. The Lord President really got a grip of that and massively accelerated the process. The result was that those who appealed were much less likely to get bail. And, therefore, much less likely to appeal. The Appeal court was also not presented with endless cases where the defence were able to argue, yes he has been a very naughty boy but he's kept his nose clean in the last 2 years/now got a young child/ even got a job.
Speed up trials and there will be more pleas.
Reading about the court and justice system depresses me, as while money doesn't solve all problems in the world, it does seem that adequately funding and resourcing the courts and lawyers pays for itself with improved efficiency, on top of being important for justice purposes. It just seems to be such a false economy for the government to have cut back so much.
No votes in the criminal justice system other than making noises about "monsters" and "life should mean life", I think this is a big part of why it's been neglected. It's a populist age and this is reflected in political rhetoric and priorities.
And that's why the British state is gradually shrinking towards an NHS, a pension system and a national flagship. There just aren't votes in spending on anything else.
Yes. Eg look at how "sorting out social care" became little more than a new iteration of "penny on tax to fund our NHS".
I think Scott's program of government is "we wouldn't have got rid of them in the first place". Which is a fair point.
Now that we have irrefutable evidence of the impact of taking migrant and immigrant workers out of the economy, how about we take a crack at seeing what happens when we take all the MPs who voted for #BREXIT out of Parliament at the earliest possible opportunity? https://twitter.com/HardenStance/status/1444215094502739968
Well, I intend to cast my vote looking forwards, rather than back. Obviously if any candidate is delusional (There are no benefits to Brexit / there are no problems with Brexit) that won't get my vote, but Brexit isn't the only thing in our political life.
Small work question - what do you call a construction of two semi-detached houses? The German is Eigenheim, but "own home" is a false friend and I'm not sure there is an English term for it.
What context?
Normally it would be "pair of semi-detached houses" (likes shoes, one on its own is incomplete, and the two are both separate and interdependent) or perhaps "two semi-detached houses", though the latter misses the relationship.
My rate is - like Unherd - £1 per word
This is what I am defining:
Maisonette is usually a flat on two or more floors with its own internal staircase and front door. Duplex in the UK is a flat on 2 floors, with an internal staircase. If a flat has 3 floors in the UK, it is a triplex.
The Queen opening Holyrood live on Sky meeting Nicola and fellow politicians with lots of Union Jack's being waved by the crowds around Holyrood is rather amusing
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Insult those who have a different view then and add to their support
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
I think Scott's program of government is "we wouldn't have got rid of them in the first place". Which is a fair point.
Raising the minimum wage with unlimited immigration didn't fixed anything beyond dragging more and more skill sets / jobs into the minimum wage net.
We have one independent chain of garages with its own trucks and depot in Shoreham. They are keeping going, but do not have the capacity to pick up the slack left by gaps elsewhere.
We were told this would be over in a few days. It isn’t. It’s not just panic.
Yup, a similar story in my part of London. The independent garage that I was relying on until last week empty later on yesterday. Got up early today and found fuel elsewhere, but quite a reasonable way away.
London and the South East are having issues and I have said that and so have the media
I am not selfish or complacent, but it is fair to comment on our local issues and as I said on Thursday the Asda driver delivering our order said that there was only one car filling up when he left and in his words 'it is over' and to be fair he works for Asda
Shortly after Sky were reporting from Chester again from a service station with no queues
Furthermore yesteday there were posts again saying they were able to obtain fuel
There is a need to recognise some will be having issues but it is also fair to say many are not
Just filled up (in Oxfordshire) - 5 min queue, no limits on purchases. Does seem to be very variable experience in terms of disruption with London seemingly hardest hit from the anecdotes friends have shared
London:
- larger population in small area - Most drivers are occasional so would assume, on balance, more partially empty tanks - Scarcity of petrol stations given (a) lower demand in normal times; (b) cost of land; and (c) alternative uses - Greater exposure to Twitter (?) - Plenty of alternative transport options
So not surprised they are disproportionately affected
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Insult those who have a different view then and add to their support
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
The argument is that if you want to raise wages, it's better to intervene to raise those wages than create artificial shortages that have bad economic and societal consequences and don't even work overall in raising wages.
Small work question - what do you call a construction of two semi-detached houses? The German is Eigenheim, but "own home" is a false friend and I'm not sure there is an English term for it.
I work in a related field and have always struggled with this. As far as I know, there is no such word in the english language (it is definetly not duplex or maisonette). Sounds rather clumsy and long but I would describe it as 'a building comprising two semi detached houses'.
It is of course the demand for cheap labour from the EU to depress UK wages
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
That seems to be where the rhetoric is shifting. It depends on people not noticing the actual shortages
I really do believe this will be the theme throughout the conservative conference and of course as has been well documented the shortages is a global reality affecting most countries
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
I wonder why London seems to be the one place where the media-invented panic is still ongoing?
Is it because London is full of FBPE Remoaners? Or because London is full of the media?
Or both.
How exactly do you think the media are preventing petrol stations being supplied? Your foolish Brexit is going to end up with petrol rationing before the end of the year.
Petrol stations are being supplied. As much as you like to whinge and invent issues.
I just imagined the two petrol stations I drove past an hour ago with cones and signs saying no fuel did i?
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Oh don't be a f***ing dingbat!
So you want to stick people nailed down to the floor of minimum wage? Have you ever considered that minimum wage is supposed to be a minimum not a maximum?
I think Continuity Remainers have persuaded themselves that the modern UK is like Minsk, c.1985.
All of which reminds you of how bad the BBC etc are at interviewing police chiefs, rarely asking the right questions.
That a police officer who shouts loudly that he will make something up when challenged will keep his job and his anonymity – and will presumably carry on policing citizens and providing evidence to courts – is an absolute counterpoint to the assertions that citizens when confronted with an arresting officer can do anything other than comply.
That case was a bloody embarrassment. Threatening, openly and without fear, to abuse your power, should be an instant dimissal. Even if it was merely a threat and he's never actually done it, that itself is an abuse. And abuse of power is far less up for correction than a procedural cockup or lack of knowledge and sensitivity. It's not something he can have thought was acceptable, and so the choice to behave so and think he can continue to serve is inexplicable.
Some jobs, some offences, have to be zero tolerance.
We have one independent chain of garages with its own trucks and depot in Shoreham. They are keeping going, but do not have the capacity to pick up the slack left by gaps elsewhere.
We were told this would be over in a few days. It isn’t. It’s not just panic.
Yup, a similar story in my part of London. The independent garage that I was relying on until last week empty later on yesterday. Got up early today and found fuel elsewhere, but quite a reasonable way away.
London and the South East are having issues and I have said that and so have the media
I am not selfish or complacent, but it is fair to comment on our local issues and as I said on Thursday the Asda driver delivering our order said that there was only one car filling up when he left and in his words 'it is over' and to be fair he works for Asda
Shortly after Sky were reporting from Chester again from a service station with no queues
Furthermore yesteday there were posts again saying they were able to obtain fuel
There is a need to recognise some will be having issues but it is also fair to say many are not
Just filled up (in Oxfordshire) - 5 min queue, no limits on purchases. Does seem to be very variable experience in terms of disruption with London seemingly hardest hit from the anecdotes friends have shared
London:
- larger population in small area - Most drivers are occasional so would assume, on balance, more partially empty tanks - Scarcity of petrol stations given (a) lower demand in normal times; (b) cost of land; and (c) alternative uses - Greater exposure to Twitter (?) - Plenty of alternative transport options
So not surprised they are disproportionately affected
1m non resident journeys into the city each day, a lot of whom are commuting regularly so filling up repeatedly as and when they can.
Harder and less economical to resupply as takes many more hours per filling station refuelled due to slow traffic.
Those are the main reasons and nothing that can be done about them apart from waiting for things to get closer to normal.
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Insult those who have a different view then and add to their support
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
The argument is that if you want to raise wages, it's better to intervene to raise those wages than create artificial shortages that have bad economic and societal consequences and don't even work overall in raising wages.
So the solution to skilled workers doing unsociable jobs being paid ridiculously low wages is to have government interventionism raising the minimum wage?
At what point should people not be expected to work for minimum wage in your eyes?
I wonder why London seems to be the one place where the media-invented panic is still ongoing?
Is it because London is full of FBPE Remoaners? Or because London is full of the media?
Or both.
If you ever want to do a media stunt, always make it in the morning within 2 hours of London so the juornos can get there, get back, and write the story, in one day, then go out drinking.
The first big noticed fracking protest - at Balcombe in W Sussex - had a direct 1:31 train to Victoria.
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
The interesting part of that linked story is that Boris also says cases are not getting to court quickly enough. The Ministry of Justice has just revealed the crown court backlog is at an all-time high, up to two years for some cases. (Admittedly, all-time means since 2014 when records began.) https://uk.news.yahoo.com/backlog-crown-court-criminal-cases-172331708.html
Oh FFS! The Tory government has repeatedly cut the budget for the criminal justice system. Boris voted for this every single time. That is why there are such delays. The situation was dire long before Covid. In many cases trials are being set for 3 or 4 years after the crimes. Crocodile tears on his part
On Cressida Dick, something occurred to me this morning. I wonder if the reason she’s still got a job is because there isn’t a woman available to replace her. Let’s be honest, they can’t appoint a man to sort this out, can they?
There are a number of senior policewomen around. Quite a few have been interviewed in recent days. And some seem to be ex-police women, which tells you something.
Personally, I've had it with tokenism. Get the best person in - someone who really understands the need for change. Get sensible female advisors. What needs to happen to the police - as I've bored everyone here senseless with - is far wider than the Everard case.
The delays in criminal justice are themselves a major source of inefficiency. So many trials are postponed and put off when witnesses have been inconvenienced. Cops are less bothered than most because they claim overtime. I regularly ask cops to attend at, say, 2.00pm but they are there by 10 to get well paid sitting in waiting rooms.
A good example of the alternative was the sentence appeal court in Scotland. The Lord President really got a grip of that and massively accelerated the process. The result was that those who appealed were much less likely to get bail. And, therefore, much less likely to appeal. The Appeal court was also not presented with endless cases where the defence were able to argue, yes he has been a very naughty boy but he's kept his nose clean in the last 2 years/now got a young child/ even got a job.
Speed up trials and there will be more pleas.
Reading about the court and justice system depresses me, as while money doesn't solve all problems in the world, it does seem that adequately funding and resourcing the courts and lawyers pays for itself with improved efficiency, on top of being important for justice purposes. It just seems to be such a false economy for the government to have cut back so much.
No votes in the criminal justice system other than making noises about "monsters" and "life should mean life", I think this is a big part of why it's been neglected. It's a populist age and this is reflected in political rhetoric and priorities.
And that's why the British state is gradually shrinking towards an NHS, a pension system and a national flagship. There just aren't votes in spending on anything else.
Yes. Eg look at how "sorting out social care" became little more than a new iteration of "penny on tax to fund our NHS".
And people have turned out a lot less supportive of even that than they claimed to be when it was merely a hypothetical opinion poll question.
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Was in Markies food hall in Banbury this morning stocking up essentials for son who is being dropped off at college today. If there were shortages of anything it was not immediately evident.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
I think he will go for Building Back Better, possibly with some reference to the budget and future years. Or perhaps foreign policy - CBBPP (or whatever it is called today), US if anything has happened (joining USMCA would be a good move), or Mercosaur, where things have been quit.
It will need something for the North.
I have heard it mooted that Section 16 of the NIP will be invoked, but that looks too complex for a comference speech to me. Even though the circs now exist to justify it.
I wonder if Macron's posturing over fish will get a mention? Macron has embarrassed himself, because he is demanding various things that are in violation of the UK-EU FTA. Big flare up not due until Oct 31 however.
It is of course the demand for cheap labour from the EU to depress UK wages
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
That seems to be where the rhetoric is shifting. It depends on people not noticing the actual shortages
I really do believe this will be the theme throughout the conservative conference and of course as has been well documented the shortages is a global reality affecting most countries
I think that article is saying the opposite of what you may be implying. The number of HGV drivers is in sharp fall in the UK, while they are increasing, or not falling as much in other European countries. Presumably those countries where there is a fall can take up some of the increase elsewhere. The UK can't because it's not in the Single Market.
People can either claim shortages are good because they drive up wages (evidence that do overall is scanty) or that there aren't any shortages. Claiming both at the same time is just dishonest.
The Queen opening Holyrood live on Sky meeting Nicola and fellow politicians with lots of Union Jack's being waved by the crowds around Holyrood is rather amusing
It is of course the demand for cheap labour from the EU to depress UK wages
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
That seems to be where the rhetoric is shifting. It depends on people not noticing the actual shortages
I really do believe this will be the theme throughout the conservative conference and of course as has been well documented the shortages is a global reality affecting most countries
I think that article is saying the opposite of what you may be implying. The number of HGV drivers is in sharp fall in the UK, while they are increasing, or not falling as much in other European countries. Presumably those countries where there is a fall can take up some of the increase elsewhere. The UK can't because it's not in the Single Market.
People can either claim shortages are good because they drive up wages (evidence that do overall is scanty) or that there aren't any shortages. Claiming both at the same time is just dishonest.
There are not many shortages and those that are will create wage increases.
Ultimately shortages will be eliminated and wages higher simultaneously, as those items that are "short" simply cease to be traded. Which is because they're the least efficient, least demanded goods (and if they weren't, they'd outbid other goods for transport costs).
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
It is of course the demand for cheap labour from the EU to depress UK wages
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
That seems to be where the rhetoric is shifting. It depends on people not noticing the actual shortages
I really do believe this will be the theme throughout the conservative conference and of course as has been well documented the shortages is a global reality affecting most countries
I think that article is saying the opposite of what you may be implying. The number of HGV drivers is in sharp fall in the UK, while they are increasing, or not falling as much in other European countries. Presumably those countries where there is a fall can take up some of the increase elsewhere. The UK can't because it's not in the Single Market.
People can either claim shortages are good because they drive up wages (evidence that do overall is scanty) or that there aren't any shortages. Claiming both at the same time is just dishonest.
Actually the UK can draw from both the EU and beyond with the new visa quota scheme, though the initial 3 month limit was stupid and at least it has been extended
HMG is not against drawing workers from abroad but it is a much more restricted and targeted immigration policy to meet our demands while preventing over supply and reduced incomes
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Was in Markies food hall in Banbury this morning stocking up essentials for son who is being dropped off at college today. If there were shortages of anything it was not immediately evident.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
Last time I was in Banbury, I saw a young man in a suit riding a unicycle on his way into work...
The Queen opening Holyrood live on Sky meeting Nicola and fellow politicians with lots of Union Jack's being waved by the crowds around Holyrood is rather amusing
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
On the last issue all I can say we've had no problems getting goods in or out at my workplace.
Now there were problems about availability of supplies and an increase in their prices 4-6 months ago but never any problems with the actual delivering.
Could really do with road work traffic signals outside petrol stations at the moment - formally make 1 lane a car park queue and let the other lane alternate rather than just completely blocking 1 direction at the moment. Would also help demand management as people would no longer be forced to queue for petrol they don't want and so buy it anyway given they've taken the hit in the queue.
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Was in Markies food hall in Banbury this morning stocking up essentials for son who is being dropped off at college today. If there were shortages of anything it was not immediately evident.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
Last time I was in Banbury, I saw a young man in a suit riding a unicycle on his way into work...
So there is even a cycle wheel rationing problem now?
We have one independent chain of garages with its own trucks and depot in Shoreham. They are keeping going, but do not have the capacity to pick up the slack left by gaps elsewhere.
We were told this would be over in a few days. It isn’t. It’s not just panic.
Yup, a similar story in my part of London. The independent garage that I was relying on until last week empty later on yesterday. Got up early today and found fuel elsewhere, but quite a reasonable way away.
London and the South East are having issues and I have said that and so have the media
I am not selfish or complacent, but it is fair to comment on our local issues and as I said on Thursday the Asda driver delivering our order said that there was only one car filling up when he left and in his words 'it is over' and to be fair he works for Asda
Shortly after Sky were reporting from Chester again from a service station with no queues
Furthermore yesteday there were posts again saying they were able to obtain fuel
There is a need to recognise some will be having issues but it is also fair to say many are not
Just filled up (in Oxfordshire) - 5 min queue, no limits on purchases. Does seem to be very variable experience in terms of disruption with London seemingly hardest hit from the anecdotes friends have shared
London:
- larger population in small area - Most drivers are occasional so would assume, on balance, more partially empty tanks - Scarcity of petrol stations given (a) lower demand in normal times; (b) cost of land; and (c) alternative uses - Greater exposure to Twitter (?) - Plenty of alternative transport options
So not surprised they are disproportionately affected
1m non resident journeys into the city each day, a lot of whom are commuting regularly so filling up repeatedly as and when they can.
Harder and less economical to resupply as takes many more hours per filling station refuelled due to slow traffic.
Those are the main reasons and nothing that can be done about them apart from waiting for things to get closer to normal.
Serious aside question: are new residents of Central London (CC Zone) now driving less since Sadiq increased their congestion charge by 900% 'during COVID'?
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage, and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no major petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the Northeastern or western coastal United States.
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
There is definitely something going on. I recently bought an engine and transmission for my '80 Firebird (this winter's project). I had them consigned to FedEx in Memphis for shipping then I got my estimate for the freight costs.... $8,000!
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Was in Markies food hall in Banbury this morning stocking up essentials for son who is being dropped off at college today. If there were shortages of anything it was not immediately evident.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
Last time I was in Banbury, I saw a young man in a suit riding a unicycle on his way into work...
So there is even a cycle wheel rationing problem now?
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
That is like a temperance spoon for Remainer hard ons over British shortages
Each country seems to have different issues with supplies and shortages. As you’d expect with a globalised trading economy with different countries specialising in different things. China is having to ration power. Germany has run out of parts and is shuttering car factories. In Britain its labour which is lacking, especially trucks
To be fair to Remoaners Brexit is part of this, but only a small part. If we were still in the SM we would be able to call on EU HGV drivers, and maybe some would come. But how many? All the EU faces driver shortages. Covid has displaced tens of thousands, and encouraged thousands more into new, better jobs
Covid is the big issue. It has broken global supply chains in multiple ways, and rapid recovery has added extra stress, and now we have a cascade effect, worldwide. Could be a tough winter. Brace
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage,and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the coastal united states.
There's no petrol or food shortage in this nation either.
There's a petrol demand surplus, primarily it seems in media + FBPE Twitter dominated London.
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
There is definitely something going on. I recently bought an engine and transmission for my '80 Firebird (this winter's project). I had them consigned to FedEx in Memphis for shipping then I got my estimate for the freight costs.... $8,000!
We have one independent chain of garages with its own trucks and depot in Shoreham. They are keeping going, but do not have the capacity to pick up the slack left by gaps elsewhere.
We were told this would be over in a few days. It isn’t. It’s not just panic.
Yup, a similar story in my part of London. The independent garage that I was relying on until last week empty later on yesterday. Got up early today and found fuel elsewhere, but quite a reasonable way away.
London and the South East are having issues and I have said that and so have the media
I am not selfish or complacent, but it is fair to comment on our local issues and as I said on Thursday the Asda driver delivering our order said that there was only one car filling up when he left and in his words 'it is over' and to be fair he works for Asda
Shortly after Sky were reporting from Chester again from a service station with no queues
Furthermore yesteday there were posts again saying they were able to obtain fuel
There is a need to recognise some will be having issues but it is also fair to say many are not
Just filled up (in Oxfordshire) - 5 min queue, no limits on purchases. Does seem to be very variable experience in terms of disruption with London seemingly hardest hit from the anecdotes friends have shared
London:
- larger population in small area - Most drivers are occasional so would assume, on balance, more partially empty tanks - Scarcity of petrol stations given (a) lower demand in normal times; (b) cost of land; and (c) alternative uses - Greater exposure to Twitter (?) - Plenty of alternative transport options
So not surprised they are disproportionately affected
1m non resident journeys into the city each day, a lot of whom are commuting regularly so filling up repeatedly as and when they can.
Harder and less economical to resupply as takes many more hours per filling station refuelled due to slow traffic.
Those are the main reasons and nothing that can be done about them apart from waiting for things to get closer to normal.
Serious aside question: are new residents of Central London (CC Zone) now driving less since Sadiq increased their congestion charge by 900% 'during COVID'?
I live on the edge of the zone so it makes no sense to go in. I used to drive in sometimes on evenings or weekends, when it was free, a few times a month but now it will be more like once or twice a year. In order those journeys replaced with use tube instead, go to a venue outside the zone or stay home.
I dont think Sadiq had any choice on the matter, it was a central government diktat as far as I remember.
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Was in Markies food hall in Banbury this morning stocking up essentials for son who is being dropped off at college today. If there were shortages of anything it was not immediately evident.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
The only thing I've noticed missing was long life pomegranate juice and then only for a couple of weeks.
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Insult those who have a different view then and add to their support
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
The argument is that if you want to raise wages, it's better to intervene to raise those wages than create artificial shortages that have bad economic and societal consequences and don't even work overall in raising wages.
So the solution to skilled workers doing unsociable jobs being paid ridiculously low wages is to have government interventionism raising the minimum wage?
At what point should people not be expected to work for minimum wage in your eyes?
I didn't mention minimum wage, although that is one of the methods you might use to raise wages. Countries in Europe, including the Netherlands, have used industry agreed and government backed initiatives to improve both wages and conditions for lorry drivers as well as their supply.
The point is, this kind of intervention is no less ineffective than the damaging artificial shortages that you simultaneously endorse and deny they exist.
Real increases in prosperity are demand led and not shortage driven
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage, and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no major petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the Northeastern or western coastal United States.
There were pictures of food shortages in Brussels supermarkets this week
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage,and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the coastal united states.
There's no petrol or food shortage in this nation either.
There's a petrol demand surplus, primarily it seems in media + FBPE Twitter dominated London.
It does seem that there are authentic movement, rather than supply shortages, in some areas.
There are also authentic shortages of certain foodstuffs.
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Was in Markies food hall in Banbury this morning stocking up essentials for son who is being dropped off at college today. If there were shortages of anything it was not immediately evident.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
Last time I was in Banbury, I saw a young man in a suit riding a unicycle on his way into work...
So there is even a cycle wheel rationing problem now?
That was back in 2018, so I suppose it might have been an early indication of post-Brexit shortages...
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Was in Markies food hall in Banbury this morning stocking up essentials for son who is being dropped off at college today. If there were shortages of anything it was not immediately evident.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
Last time I was in Banbury, I saw a young man in a suit riding a unicycle on his way into work...
So there is even a cycle wheel rationing problem now?
Worse than that, evidently a cock-horse shortage.
There are enough cocks in the government so we just need to find some horses.
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Enjoying all the Brexit supporters explaining how it was all about higher wages all along when they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments without causing massive disruption / shortages + losing the advantages of being in a huge trade bloc. https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
Insult those who have a different view then and add to their support
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
The argument is that if you want to raise wages, it's better to intervene to raise those wages than create artificial shortages that have bad economic and societal consequences and don't even work overall in raising wages.
So the solution to skilled workers doing unsociable jobs being paid ridiculously low wages is to have government interventionism raising the minimum wage?
At what point should people not be expected to work for minimum wage in your eyes?
I didn't mention minimum wage, although that is one of the methods you might use to raise wages. Countries in Europe, including the Netherlands, have used industry agreed and government backed initiatives to improve both wages and conditions for lorry drivers as well as their supply.
The point is, this kind of intervention is no less ineffective than the damaging artificial shortages that you simultaneously endorse and deny they exist.
Real increases in prosperity are demand led and not shortage driven
You didn't mention minimum wage but you responded to a conversation whereby raising minimum wage was the proposed alternative to cutting off infinite labour supply: they could've just raised the minimum wage in increments
Do you think skilled workers doing unsociable work should be getting paid on or close to minimum wage?
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage, and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no major petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the Northeastern or western coastal United States.
There were pictures of food shortages in Brussels supermarkets this week
Sources ? Confirmed trade bodies information as provided in the UK, please.
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage,and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the coastal united states.
There's no petrol or food shortage in this nation either.
There's a petrol demand surplus, primarily it seems in media + FBPE Twitter dominated London.
That's a good Mohammed al-Sahhaf, do you do any other impressions?
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage,and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the coastal united states.
There's no petrol or food shortage in this nation either.
There's a petrol demand surplus, primarily it seems in media + FBPE Twitter dominated London.
That's a good Mohammed al-Sahhaf, do you do any other impressions?
Its the truth.
Just because the truth doesn't suit your agenda doesn't change it.
All of which reminds you of how bad the BBC etc are at interviewing police chiefs, rarely asking the right questions.
That a police officer who shouts loudly that he will make something up when challenged will keep his job and his anonymity – and will presumably carry on policing citizens and providing evidence to courts – is an absolute counterpoint to the assertions that citizens when confronted with an arresting officer can do anything other than comply.
That case was a bloody embarrassment. Threatening, openly and without fear, to abuse your power, should be an instant dimissal. Even if it was merely a threat and he's never actually done it, that itself is an abuse. And abuse of power is far less up for correction than a procedural cockup or lack of knowledge and sensitivity. It's not something he can have thought was acceptable, and so the choice to behave so and think he can continue to serve is inexplicable.
Some jobs, some offences, have to be zero tolerance.
And that is why police culture needs to be totally rebuilt from the bottom up. And why those in charge now - who have presided over and allowed this culture to develop - are not the ones to put this right.
I can’t figure out why Sadiq and Priti and Keir have all given their support to Dick.
To the extent that it makes you wonder what we’re not being told?
It's a strange one isn't it. Patel you can understand because it would be admitting an error. The other two?
Probably because Starmer and Khan are actually grownups. I think there is a case for Dick going, but it’s not helpful to pile on an individual in situations like this.
I agree that there is some scapegoating going on.
Dick would have a better defence if she made some public statements of intent how she was going to root out misogyny and the people who obstructed the Morgan investigation etc.
The police's response has been, once again, to tell women what they need to do. Women are again being made responsible for stopping male police officers harming them.
They are not telling police officers what to do. They are not telling men what to do. No - women have to once again add "waving at buses" and "knocking on strangers' doors" to the list of other stuff they need to do if they want to go outside their homes without being menaced.
FFS!!
Yes I'm angry. I'm not the only woman to feel this way. Angry and tired of this and utterly contemptuous of this pathetically risible response.
Keir Starmer agreed with you yesterday, quite forcefully. He said the problem with the Met and Ministers is that they are telling women what they should do differently, when they should be telling the police what they should do differently. He's right.
Once again the empty shelves? Just been shopping. Meat from the butcher, no issues. Green grocer in the arcade, no problems, although warned about a coming shortage of cob nuts... as the season is ending. Waitrose - I could see no shortages at all. I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Was in Markies food hall in Banbury this morning stocking up essentials for son who is being dropped off at college today. If there were shortages of anything it was not immediately evident.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
Last time I was in Banbury, I saw a young man in a suit riding a unicycle on his way into work...
So there is even a cycle wheel rationing problem now?
Loads of Shimano components are hard to get through normal channels. Shimano's European operation is run from the Netherlands so the UK gets doubly fucked due to Brexit. Yahoo Auctions Japan is the only way to get some parts at vast expense. Campagnolo is hard to get too but SRAM is easier.
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage, and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no major petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the Northeastern or western coastal United States.
There were pictures of food shortages in Brussels supermarkets this week
Though they have problems because of Walloon / Not Walloon politics. It seems that bringing goods into Wallonia from the rest of Belgium is verboten. Or something.
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage,and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the coastal united states.
There's no petrol or food shortage in this nation either.
There's a petrol demand surplus, primarily it seems in media + FBPE Twitter dominated London.
That's a good Mohammed al-Sahhaf, do you do any other impressions?
Its the truth.
Just because the truth doesn't suit your agenda doesn't change it.
A good Eric Morecambe, playing all the right notes but not necessarily in the right order.
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage, and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no major petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the Northeastern or western coastal United States.
There were pictures of food shortages in Brussels supermarkets this week
Though they have problems because of Walloon / Not Walloon politics. It seems that bringing goods into Wallonia from the rest of Belgium is verboten. Or something.
Too late, it's already gone viral amongst the ultra-Brexiters on social media, with no information providing that crucial supporting context. I've heard that one mentioned already elsewhere today ; the need for complete normalisation of whatever is going on is very strong.
We may need temporary visas to deal with the fuel supply issues.
However if the answer to skill shortages is always more migration we're a failed state.
No, we are ageing one.
The UK has been an ageing state for generations.
What we're seeing is a concentration of wealth in the hands of the oldies.
Much of which needs to be shifted back down the age ladder.
And the best way of doing that is through pay rises for the lower paid in the younger generations with the oldies having to pay more for what they consume.
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
These are all true to differing extents, especially the worldwide semiconductor shortage,and the cargo ships stuck off the californian coast, but there are no petrol or food shortages in the rest of western europe as yet, nor, from what I can gather, anywhere on the coastal united states.
There's no petrol or food shortage in this nation either.
There's a petrol demand surplus, primarily it seems in media + FBPE Twitter dominated London.
That's a good Mohammed al-Sahhaf, do you do any other impressions?
Its the truth.
Just because the truth doesn't suit your agenda doesn't change it.
Just to be clear, how much are you attributing shortages at pumps to FBPE Twitter? 1%? 100%? Something in between?
The view from Ireland. Brexit is a relatively trivial part of a global problem
‘Supply-chain shock: ‘Do your Christmas shopping early’
‘Recent headlines about UK shortages of everything from petrol to milk to games consoles have been met with concern here and the occasional hint of schadenfreude. But the story of how Maher’s Christmas trees got snarled up in a global supply chain crunch as they travelled from the factory owned by his US supplier in China to Malahide is part of a much larger, and infinitely more complex picture that dwarfs the problems caused by Brexit, and is already leading to price hikes and goods shortages here.’
Comments
I would suggest you ready yourself for Boris in full @Philip_Thompson mode to take this argument head on this week and accusing labour and others of wanting much more immigration (100,000 HGV drivers alone) at the expense of decent wages
Which is an issue if the root cause of the problem is inadequate supply rather than purely panic buying.
https://davidallengreen.com/2021/10/the-i-will-make-something-up-who-are-they-going-to-believe-me-or-you-police-officer-only-gets-a-written-warning-and-why-this-matters-after-the-sarah-everard-murder/
All of which reminds you of how bad the BBC etc are at interviewing police chiefs, rarely asking the right questions.
Before the reshuffle, Rishi was the sole heir apparent. Now there are two, and to an extent that means they cancel each other out. That strengthens BoJo.
I'm sure C. Northcote Parkinson had something to say about this. Whatever else he does/doesn't understand, BoJo understands power.
https://twitter.com/Samfr/status/1443886402215743500
And still the gullible idiots cheer...
So you want to stick people nailed down to the floor of minimum wage? Have you ever considered that minimum wage is supposed to be a minimum not a maximum?
This is the cost of Tory incompetence. https://twitter.com/UKLabour/status/1444210547193417735/photo/1
For example does the DHSC, the medical profession, the NHS's finance chiefs and the treasury ever sit down and ask "How much would it cost to have what the medical profession would regard as a proper NHS?" And don't stop until they have agreed an answer.
PS What's the answer?
Queues even longer in this corner of south London for petrol this morning. https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1444240096081977345/photo/1
In and around SE London the petrol stations are either empty or with lengthy queues blocking all traffic until there is no more fuel in them.
https://twitter.com/fredsirieix1/status/1444228368648507395
Is it because London is full of FBPE Remoaners?
Or because London is full of the media?
Or both.
And how do you think raising the minimum wage would help get more HGV drivers or even agricultural workers
"If you wish to miss out on that, that's up to you." Like that. Or, if you want some edge to it you could say, "that's entirely up to you".
Brexit really is a religion.
Normally it would be "pair of semi-detached houses" (likes shoes, one on its own is incomplete, and the two are both separate and interdependent) or perhaps "two semi-detached houses", though the latter misses the relationship.
My rate is - like Unherd - £1 per word
Which is a fair point.
https://twitter.com/HardenStance/status/1444215094502739968
Boris Johnson will argue (as per Times interview) that there is a big divide over using overseas workers to plug the current gaps.
Talking privately to Tory MPs and others, they say this argument has limits. See below
From my Tory conference preview http://news.sky.com/story/tory-party-conference-pm-will-try-to-turn-a-troublesome-backdrop-to-his-advantage-12423573 https://twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1444242042931007495/photo/1
I am not saying there are no shortages in places, but the media is distorting the reality.
Harsh winter threatens to send energy prices even higher
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2021/10/02/harsh-winter-threatens-send-energy-prices-even-higher/
Maisonette is usually a flat on two or more floors with its own internal staircase and front door.
Duplex in the UK is a flat on 2 floors, with an internal staircase.
If a flat has 3 floors in the UK, it is a triplex.
- larger population in small area
- Most drivers are occasional so would assume, on balance, more partially empty tanks
- Scarcity of petrol stations given (a) lower demand in normal times; (b) cost of land; and (c) alternative uses
- Greater exposure to Twitter (?)
- Plenty of alternative transport options
So not surprised they are disproportionately affected
And why was that @Roy_G_Biv banned? He always seemed to pick on @Big_G_NorthWales G, was it for that?
This is interesting from Sky
https://news.sky.com/story/why-is-europe-short-of-lorry-drivers-and-how-bad-is-the-crisis-12423174
“‘A perfect storm’: supply chain crisis could blow world economy off course
From Liverpool to LA, shortages of energy, labour and transport are threatening recovery from Covid”
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/oct/02/supply-chain-world-economy-energy-labour-transport-covid?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
That a police officer who shouts loudly that he will make something up when challenged will keep his job and his anonymity – and will presumably carry on policing citizens and providing evidence to courts – is an absolute counterpoint to the assertions that citizens when confronted with an arresting officer can do anything other than comply.
That case was a bloody embarrassment. Threatening, openly and without fear, to abuse your power, should be an instant dimissal. Even if it was merely a threat and he's never actually done it, that itself is an abuse. And abuse of power is far less up for correction than a procedural cockup or lack of knowledge and sensitivity. It's not something he can have thought was acceptable, and so the choice to behave so and think he can continue to serve is inexplicable.
Some jobs, some offences, have to be zero tolerance.
Harder and less economical to resupply as takes many more hours per filling station refuelled due to slow traffic.
Those are the main reasons and nothing that can be done about them apart from waiting for things to get closer to normal.
At what point should people not be expected to work for minimum wage in your eyes?
The first big noticed fracking protest - at Balcombe in W Sussex - had a direct 1:31 train to Victoria.
Have to say that Banbury is a seriously nice place. I have mentioned that we have got to a situation in Dundee that nearly 1/3rd of shops are now sitting empty making the High street and shopping centres look depressing and greatly restricting choice. In Banbury there doesn't seem to be an empty shop, the restaurant we went to last night was superb and the baking where we went for coffee this morning was first class. There was a slightly weird thing that by 8.00am there were at least 4 barbers all doing a roaring trade.
The town has a very prosperous feel to it. It's impressive.
I think he will go for Building Back Better, possibly with some reference to the budget and future years. Or perhaps foreign policy - CBBPP (or whatever it is called today), US if anything has happened (joining USMCA would be a good move), or Mercosaur, where things have been quit.
It will need something for the North.
I have heard it mooted that Section 16 of the NIP will be invoked, but that looks too complex for a comference speech to me. Even though the circs now exist to justify it.
I wonder if Macron's posturing over fish will get a mention? Macron has embarrassed himself, because he is demanding various things that are in violation of the UK-EU FTA. Big flare up not due until Oct 31 however.
People can either claim shortages are good because they drive up wages (evidence that do overall is scanty) or that there aren't any shortages. Claiming both at the same time is just dishonest.
https://twitter.com/drdagly/status/1443577158023073796?s=21
Sweet Jesus. ‘And vaccination can prevent almost all of this’
Ultimately shortages will be eliminated and wages higher simultaneously, as those items that are "short" simply cease to be traded. Which is because they're the least efficient, least demanded goods (and if they weren't, they'd outbid other goods for transport costs).
There’s a quiet panic happening in the US economy. Medical labs are running out of supplies like pipettes and petri dishes, summer camps and restaurants are having trouble getting food, and automobile, paint and electronics firms are curtailing production because they can’t get semiconductors. One man told me he couldn’t get a Whopper meal at a Burger King in Florida, as there was a sign saying “Sorry, no french fries with any order. We have no potatoes.”
Imagine that, no french fries in America.
The problem seems to be getting worse, as the shortages pile on top of each other like a snake eating its tail. For instance, the inability to fix trucks means that truck drivers can’t haul boxes of goods, which might actually contain the parts needed to fix the trucks, and so forth.
...
Then there’s trucking. Talk to most businesspeople who make or move things and they will complain about the driver shortage. This too is a story of deregulation. In the 1970s, the end of public rate-setting forced trucking firms to compete against each other to offer lower shipping prices. The way they did this was by lowering pay to their drivers. Trucking on a firm-level became unpredictable and financially fragile, so for drivers schedules became unsustainable, even if the pay during boom times could be high. Today, even though pay is going up, the scheduling is crushing drivers. The result is a shortage of truckers.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/oct/01/america-supply-chain-shortages
HMG is not against drawing workers from abroad but it is a much more restricted and targeted immigration policy to meet our demands while preventing over supply and reduced incomes
Now there were problems about availability of supplies and an increase in their prices 4-6 months ago but never any problems with the actual delivering.
However if the answer to skill shortages is always more migration we're a failed state.
My contacts and I had fun bringing this piece together.
A Tory MP told HuffPost UK: “Maybe they’ve forgotten who they are – why they are there.”
https://m.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/cosplay-cabinet-battle-brands-at-the-heart-of-government_uk_61557886e4b008640eb05f15 https://twitter.com/SophiaSleigh/status/1444202500278689799/photo/1
To be fair to Remoaners Brexit is part of this, but only a small part. If we were still in the SM we would be able to call on EU HGV drivers, and maybe some would come. But how many? All the EU faces driver shortages. Covid has displaced tens of thousands, and encouraged thousands more into new, better jobs
Covid is the big issue. It has broken global supply chains in multiple ways, and rapid recovery has added extra stress, and now we have a cascade effect, worldwide. Could be a tough winter. Brace
There's a petrol demand surplus, primarily it seems in media + FBPE Twitter dominated London.
I dont think Sadiq had any choice on the matter, it was a central government diktat as far as I remember.
The point is, this kind of intervention is no less ineffective than the damaging artificial shortages that you simultaneously endorse and deny they exist.
Real increases in prosperity are demand led and not shortage driven
There are also authentic shortages of certain foodstuffs.
Walking of which, the other day I heard of a sport that I'd never encountered: mountain unicycling.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_unicycling
See here - https://barry-walsh.co.uk/lockdown-blues/
This case also shows why having 2 police officers is not necessarily the answer.
Do you think skilled workers doing unsociable work should be getting paid on or close to minimum wage?
Just because the truth doesn't suit your agenda doesn't change it.
https://www.retaildetail.eu/en/news/food/empty-shelves-carrefour-due-strikes-distribution-centres
Though they have problems because of Walloon / Not Walloon politics. It seems that bringing goods into Wallonia from the rest of Belgium is verboten. Or something.
What we're seeing is a concentration of wealth in the hands of the oldies.
Much of which needs to be shifted back down the age ladder.
And the best way of doing that is through pay rises for the lower paid in the younger generations with the oldies having to pay more for what they consume.
‘Supply-chain shock: ‘Do your Christmas shopping early’
‘Recent headlines about UK shortages of everything from petrol to milk to games consoles have been met with concern here and the occasional hint of schadenfreude. But the story of how Maher’s Christmas trees got snarled up in a global supply chain crunch as they travelled from the factory owned by his US supplier in China to Malahide is part of a much larger, and infinitely more complex picture that dwarfs the problems caused by Brexit, and is already leading to price hikes and goods shortages here.’
https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/supply-chain-shock-do-your-christmas-shopping-early-1.4687902