British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has put the army on high alert as part of measures to combat the fuel crisis. This was reported by The Guardian newspaper on Monday, September 27.
It is noted that the military can be used as drivers for transporting fuel to gas stations.
The decision was made at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers held on Monday. At the meeting, representatives of the energy industry said that it was the panic of consumers, and not the real shortage, that became the main cause of problems with fuel shortages.
According to the ministers, the crisis will be eliminated within a few days.
"The UK still has large fuel reserves. However, we are aware of the problems with the supply chain at the gas station and are taking steps to eliminate them as a priority, " said Kwasi Kvarteng, Minister for Business, Energy and Environmentally Friendly Growth.
According to him, the deployment of military personnel will ease the pressure caused by sharp jumps in local demand for fuel.
In order to solve the problem with the lack of gasoline, the authorities also released truck drivers from the need to re-pass exams to renew their licenses, since the procedure takes three days. The rights that expire in the period from September 27 to December 31 are extended until January 31, 2022.
Earlier, The Times newspaper has already written that British servicemen may be attracted as drivers of fuel trucks because of the problem with the shortage of drivers in the country, which has already led to interruptions in the supply of fuel at gas stations.
According to the publication, Britain has faced disruptions in the food supply chain over the past few months due to a shortage of truck drivers, as well as fuel trucks. This led to the closure of some gas stations. Residents of the country began to buy gasoline in a panic, despite the assurances of the authorities that there are no problems with fuel supplies.
Earlier, on September 27, the BBC reported that the UK government will suspend the competition Law of 1998 in order to establish fuel supplies to gas stations.
On September 23, BP closed several dozen gas stations due to difficulties with fuel supplies. This caused panic buying of gasoline, queues and traffic jams.
