Brexit slowly becoming a Farce.

[Jacksgranda]

25 minutes ago, Granny Danger said:

U.K. government to issue 5,000 temporary visas to help alleviate the HGV crisis.  That’s about 5% of what’s needed but is no doubt motivated by an unwillingness to admit mistakes.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-58687026

We're short of 100,000 HGV drivers? 

[Granny Danger]

2 minutes ago, Jacksgranda said:

We're short of 100,000 HGV drivers? 

That’s what it says:

The Road Haulage Association estimates the UK is short of about 100,000 HGV drivers - with existing shortages made worse by the pandemic and Brexit.
 

There are apparently 300,000 qualified HGV drivers who no longer work in that occupation.  I find that a bit surprising.

[Jacksgranda]

3 minutes ago, Granny Danger said:

That’s what it says:

The Road Haulage Association estimates the UK is short of about 100,000 HGV drivers - with existing shortages made worse by the pandemic and Brexit.
 

There are apparently 300,000 qualified HGV drivers who no longer work in that occupation.  I find that a bit surprising.

Aye, I read it too. Find both those figures hard to believe, tbqh, but I'm sure they're telling the truth...

[bendan]

43 minutes ago, Jacksgranda said:

Aye, I read it too. Find both those figures hard to believe, tbqh, but I'm sure they're telling the truth...

Yes, I can't think why the employers would want a massively larger pool of potential workers. Funny how the unions don't come up with the same figures.

[Lofarl]

My granddad didn’t get his feet wet and a bit seasick at Dunkirk so we could run out of HGV drivers.  Make the prisoners do it.

[Granny Danger]

I’m intrigued by the suggestion in some quarters that the medium term solution to the HGV driver shortage is to make the training shorter/tests easier.

Given the shortage of skilled NHS staff I’m assuming the same approach can be adopted.  “Surgeon required, must have biology O grade”.

 

[bendan]

19 minutes ago, Granny Danger said:

I’m intrigued by the suggestion in some quarters that the medium term solution to the HGV driver shortage is to make the training shorter/tests easier.

Given the shortage of skilled NHS staff I’m assuming the same approach can be adopted.  “Surgeon required, must have biology O grade”.

 

With the NHS, a long-standing way of doing it is to import people from countries with less rigorous training rather than make UK-based training easier. 

[Granny Danger]

4 minutes ago, bendan said:

With the NHS, a long-standing way of doing it is to import people from countries with less rigorous training rather than make UK-based training easier. 

So they don’t even have O grade biology?  That’s worrying.

[bendan]

2 minutes ago, Granny Danger said:

So they don’t even have O grade biology?  That’s worrying.

Even Scottish kids don't have O grade biology now. Or in fact any O grades.

[Jacksgranda]

Just now, bendan said:

Even Scottish kids don't have O grade biology now. Or in fact any O grades.

I've 5 going spare if anybody wants one. (None of them are O Grade Biology, granted.)

[Granny Danger]

8 minutes ago, bendan said:

Even Scottish kids don't have O grade biology now. Or in fact any O grades.

Yeah but life didn’t just start at the point O grades ended.

[Michael W]

 

1 hour ago, Granny Danger said:

That’s what it says:

The Road Haulage Association estimates the UK is short of about 100,000 HGV drivers - with existing shortages made worse by the pandemic and Brexit.
 

There are apparently 300,000 qualified HGV drivers who no longer work in that occupation.  I find that a bit surprising.

It was a Tory MP that highlighted that figure (Andrew Brigden). His argument was that this meant there wasn't a shortage of drivers. An interesting way of denying there's a problem, if you like. 

There might indeed not be a shortage of potential drivers in the UK, but there will be any number of reasons they aren't driving HGVs now, though most likely due to the anti-social of the job. There was that article maybe a couple of months back now about the HGV driver that got a 40% pay rise. He was still thinking about leaving the industry because of the hours. 

I don't think we can assume that chucking money at the problem is going to make it go away and indeed there is a shortage, albeit less severe, of drivers in Europe as well. Might well come to punting goods out in Transit vans and clogging roads with them for the time being. 

[Granny Danger]

1 minute ago, Michael W said:

 

It was a Tory MP that highlighted that figure (Andrew Brigden). His argument was that this meant there wasn't a shortage of drivers. An interesting way of denying there's a problem, if you like. 

There might indeed not be a shortage of potential drivers in the UK, but there will be any number of reasons they aren't driving HGVs now, though most likely due to the anti-social of the job. There was that article maybe a couple of months back now about the HGV driver that got a 40% pay rise. He was still thinking about leaving the industry because of the hours. 

I don't think we can assume that chucking money at the problem is going to make it go away and indeed there is a shortage, albeit less severe, of drivers in Europe as well. Might well come to punting goods out in Transit vans and clogging roads with them for the time being. 

Yeah folk change jobs for all sorts of reasons.  I know a guy who is a time served joiner but worked as a postie for years.  No idea why as I don’t think it would be more lucrative but he obviously had his reasons.

Went back to the tools about 8 years ago and is now doing very well as a small self employed contractor.

 

[bendan]

3 minutes ago, Michael W said:

 

I don't think we can assume that chucking money at the problem is going to make it go away and indeed there is a shortage, albeit less severe, of drivers in Europe as well. Might well come to punting goods out in Transit vans and clogging roads with them for the time being. 

Yes, you'd think messy solutions like that would be what happens. I can also see the UK doing 'limited trials' of driverless trucks fairly soon.

[red23]

This was always my problem with Brexit, we actually had things quite good i'd say, certainly compared to the majority of other countries in the world.

But people are greedy and will never stop wanting more.

Seems like the world will just implode one day, look how far we've sunk since 2019 ,which was one of the years everyone was saying the old "Can't wait to see the back on 2019 its been the worst year ever!" the same as they did in 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015...

Edited September 25, 2021 by red23

[Lofarl]

Government to fast track driverless trucks pilot scheme any day now imo.

[red23]

3 minutes ago, Lofarl said:

Government to fast track driverless trucks pilot scheme any day now imo.

Part of the reason young people would be daft to get in to a new 30/40 year career as a lorry driver.

[Baxter Parp]

HGV shortage: EU drivers set to snub Boris Johnson’s appeal to solve UK petrol crisis with Brexit visa offer

https://inews.co.uk/news/hgv-shortage-eu-drivers-snub-boris-johnsons-uk-petrol-crisis-brexit-visa-offer-1217320

"likely to ignore the UK in favour of “higher pay and better working conditions”

This government is unbelievably stupid.

[ICTJohnboy]

33 minutes ago, Baxter Parp said:

HGV shortage: EU drivers set to snub Boris Johnson’s appeal to solve UK petrol crisis with Brexit visa offer

https://inews.co.uk/news/hgv-shortage-eu-drivers-snub-boris-johnsons-uk-petrol-crisis-brexit-visa-offer-1217320

"likely to ignore the UK in favour of “higher pay and better working conditions”

This government is unbelievably stupid.

 

Unbelievably stupid? It's fucking madness.

Why should anyone in the EU consider a Brexit visa offer just for a couple of months? Where would they stay? Will the government be paying for accommodation, in the unlikely event of anyone taking up this offer? 

It's absolutely staggering, that no one, but no one, in government circles - or even in opposition, is blaming Brexit for this situation. Is it tantamount to high treason to do that?

[Barney Rubble]

3 minutes ago, Ex-pat Scotty said:

Exactly, it's about self determination, just as to a certain extent brexit was. I don't understand why people think brexit and Indy are poles apart politically.

Neither do I understand why most Indy campaigners are obsessed with rejoining the EU. They want to break free from the shackles of the union, and then immediately join an unaccountable superstate with no democracy whatsoever. Absolutely mind boggling.

Utter nonsense. Your opinion is rendered completely void with statements that are demonstrably false.