Britain’s fuel shortage showing ‘very tentative signs of stabilisation,’ transport secretary rejects criticism of govt’s handling

UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has defended the government’s handling of recent fuel shortages due to panic buying, as he reassured motorists that officials are seeing “very tentative signs of stabilisation” of the situation.

Speaking on Tuesday, Shapps told British media that, following a weekend of panic buying which resulted in 90% of forecourts running dry, officials are beginning to see “very tentative signs of stabilisation” that will ease the fuel shortage.

While the transport secretary expects the situation to begin to improve, he warned that it “won’t be reflected in the queues as yet,” reiterating the government’s request for motorists to return to “normal buying habits.”

We all need to play our part, and certainly don’t do things like bring water bottles to petrol stations, it is dangerous and extremely unhelpful.

Seeking to deflect criticism that’s been levelled against the government, Shapps argued that the prime minister and his officials had taken “numerous different measures” since April to prepare for and protect against a fuel shortage, as a lack of HGV drivers began to cause supply chain problems.

The remarks from Shapps come after UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace confirmed that the British Army is on standby to support areas where there is a fuel shortage, to “enable them to seamlessly work with industry to address the supply chain pressures.”

Prior to Wallace’s confirmation, Environment Secretary George Eustice rejected reports that the army would be used to prevent further problems, stating there were “no plans at the moment” to draft them in.

Like this story? Share it with a friend!