Ports blocked in UK: will Brits be deprived of Christmas presents?
Many ships, filled with Christmas presents, had to be diverted for lack of space in British ports. Since Brexit, the country has no more drivers and containers are no longer shipped.
Tens of thousands of containers pile up in the Port of Felixstowe, UK. There are not enough trucks to evacuate and deliver them. Freighters have to wait up to ten days to be able to unload, compared to three in normal times. Inside the containers, there are toys, clothes and even electronic devices. The British and the carriers fear the shortage, ten weeks before Christmas. “It doesn’t just happen to Felixstowe. All British ports are affected, we are facing a real disaster”, says Peter Wilson, director of a shipping company.
The British authorities are trying to be reassuring, and say that Christmas would not be in danger in the United Kingdom. Oliver Dowden, the co-chairman of the Conservative Party, assured that the British “will have gifts under their tree at Christmas”. However, several toy stores are already facing stockouts, and consumers “are now flocking to purchases of toys, frozen turkey, chocolate or even Christmas pudding”, says journalist Maelys September.
