By Michael Holden

LONDON (Reuters) – Britain is expected to announce plans to issue temporary visas to truck drivers to alleviate an acute labour shortage that has led to fuel rationing at some filling stations and warnings from retailers (https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/britain-resolve-trucker-shortage-swiftly-minister-says-2021-09-24) of significant disruption in the run-up to Christmas.

Prim Minister Boris Johnson said that the government was considering temporary solutions to solve the problem of shortages in heavy goods vehicle (HGV), drivers as queues formed outside filling stations on Saturday.

The government could allow up to 5k foreign drivers in Britain for short-term visas. Newspapers claimed this was a decision that retailers and logistics firms have been requesting since months, but that had not previously been made public.

According to the UK’s Road Haulage Association, 100,000 drivers are needed for Britain if they want to keep up with demand. Partly, Brexit and COVID-19 have contributed to the driver shortage. Also, about one year has passed since driver testing and training was stopped.

“We’re looking at temporary measures to avoid any immediate problems, but any measures we introduce will be very strictly time limited,” a spokeswoman for Johnson’s Downing Street office said in a statement.

Downing Street did not provide any further details.

Ministers cautioned against panic-buying, while oil companies insist that there are not shortages, only problems with delivering fuel to gas stations.

After BP (NYSE.) announced that some outlets had been closed due to driver shortages, large lines have formed at gas stations.

Shell (LON). Stations have also reported running out of fuel pumps. ExxonMobil’s Esso also stated that some 200 Tesco Alliance stores had suffered similar problems.

EG Group, which runs hundreds of forecourts across Britain, said on Friday it would impose a purchase limit of 30 pounds ($41) per customer for fuel due to the “unprecedented customer demand”.

The Downing Street spokesperson said that there were ample fuel stock in the country, and people should feel confident.

We are experiencing a COVID-related shortfall in drivers to transport supplies across the country, just like other countries.

The fuel issue comes as Britain, the world’s fifth-largest economy, also grapples with a spike in European prices causing soaring energy prices and a potential food supply crunch.

The shortage of truck drivers is also affecting other countries like the United States, Germany, and Japan.

Britain believes that hiring more British truck drivers is the best long-term solution. The RHA says better conditions and pay are necessary to encourage people to enter the sector.

Retail industry warns that disruption will occur if the government doesn’t act within the next 10 working days to resolve the problem.

($1 = 0.7311 pounds)