British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called a UK supplies crisis meeting on Monday after several countries decided to suspend their connections due to the novel strain of coronavirus.
“The Prime Minister will host a meeting of the COBR (UK Cabinet for Crisis Situations) tomorrow (Monday) to discuss the situation regarding international travel and, in particular, the steady flow of goods to and from the UK a Downing Street spokesperson said tonight.
The discovery of a new “uncontrollable” variant of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in the UK has prompted several European countries, including Germany, France, Italy, Ireland and Bulgaria to suspend their links on Sunday with the country.
France in particular has suspended from midnight today and for at least 48 hours all passenger travel”, including the carriage of goods, by road, air, sea or train, from the United Kingdom”.
“Only unaccompanied goods will be authorized,” the French government said.
Immediately, the English port of Dover, which notably serves France, announced that it would close outgoing traffic “until further notice”.
According to the British Road Transport Association, around 10,000 trucks pass by each day.
“Stockpiling for Brexit is one thing, peak Christmas is another, but this 48-hour border closure is a massive blow,” Rod McKenzie, a representative of this federation, told Sky News.
UK ports are currently producing a massive volume of traffic, with frequent delays and traffic jams on the routes that connect them, due to the fact that many companies prepare for the UK’s exit from the European Single Market on the night of the 31st. December.
With ten days to go, post-Brexit trade talks between London and Brussels have yet to be concluded and, if this fails, the sudden introduction of quotas and tariffs raises fears of chaos in the country’s supply.
