DOVER, England: The UK was disconnected from much of Europe on Monday after its closest allies cut transport ties due to fears over a new strain of the coronavirus, which wreaked havoc for few families and businesses. days before it left the orbit of the European Union.
France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Israel and Canada closed travel relations after Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that a highly infectious new strain of the virus was a danger to the country.
Johnson will chair an emergency response meeting Monday to discuss international travel, particularly the flow of cargo in and out of Britain.
France closed its border to the arrivals of people and trucks from the United Kingdom, closing one of the most important commercial arteries with continental Europe, a step that Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said was surprising.
“I am in contact with my opposite number in France and we are doing everything we can to get it restarted, in fact they told us they want to restart the carriers as quickly as possible,” Shapps told Sky.
Shapps said his priority was to lift the bans as quickly as possible, but that given the British preparations for the end of the Brexit transition period, the country was well prepared for the disruption.
Talks on a Brexit trade deal were to continue on Monday.
TRANSPORTATION CHAOS
Johnson canceled Christmas plans for millions of Britons on Saturday because of what he said was a more infectious strain of the coronavirus, although he said there was no evidence that it was more lethal or caused more serious illness.
The new variant contains 23 different changes, many of them associated with alterations in a protein produced by the virus. Shapps said Britain had done some of the best global testing of virus mutations, so he was simply looking at what was already in other countries.
Chief Scientific Advisor Patrick Vallance said on Saturday that he thought the new variant could be in other countries, but it could also have started in the UK.
The British government activated plans it had to stack trucks in the southeast county of Kent as part of its plans for a possible disruption when the UK exits the EU orbit with, or without, a trade agreement to 2300 GMT on December 31.
Trucks pile up on the M20 freeway through the county, heading to the ports, which is closed to normal traffic. A nearby airport will also be used to hold cargo.
“The sick man of Europe,” read the Daily Mirror newspaper on its front page alongside a photo of Johnson, while the Sun newspaper said “The French show no merci.”
The closing of the Channel Tunnel and ports to continue travel to France will affect the export of goods such as fish and shellfish from Scotland to Europe, and the import of food for British supermarkets if, as expected, drivers Europeans refuse to travel.
Trucks have been told to avoid Kent to prevent more trucks from piling up.
“France’s closure to UK traffic, including accompanied freight, poses difficulties for the UK’s ability to import and export key products during the busy Christmas period,” said Andrew Opie, Director of Food and Sustainability at British Retail Consortium.
“While goods can enter from France, few transport companies will be willing to send trucks and drivers to the UK without a guarantee that they can return to the EU in a timely manner.”
France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Belgium, Israel and Canada closed travel relations after Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that a highly infectious new strain of the virus was a danger to the country.
Johnson will chair an emergency response meeting Monday to discuss international travel, particularly the flow of cargo in and out of Britain.
France closed its border to the arrivals of people and trucks from the United Kingdom, closing one of the most important commercial arteries with continental Europe, a step that Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said was surprising.
“I am in contact with my opposite number in France and we are doing everything we can to get it restarted, in fact they told us they want to restart the carriers as quickly as possible,” Shapps told Sky.
Shapps said his priority was to lift the bans as quickly as possible, but that given the British preparations for the end of the Brexit transition period, the country was well prepared for the disruption.
Talks on a Brexit trade deal were to continue on Monday.
TRANSPORTATION CHAOS
Johnson canceled Christmas plans for millions of Britons on Saturday because of what he said was a more infectious strain of the coronavirus, although he said there was no evidence that it was more lethal or caused more serious illness.
The new variant contains 23 different changes, many of them associated with alterations in a protein produced by the virus. Shapps said Britain had done some of the best global testing of virus mutations, so he was simply looking at what was already in other countries.
Chief Scientific Advisor Patrick Vallance said on Saturday that he thought the new variant could be in other countries, but it could also have started in the UK.
The British government activated plans it had to stack trucks in the southeast county of Kent as part of its plans for a possible disruption when the UK exits the EU orbit with, or without, a trade agreement to 2300 GMT on December 31.
Trucks pile up on the M20 freeway through the county, heading to the ports, which is closed to normal traffic. A nearby airport will also be used to hold cargo.
“The sick man of Europe,” read the Daily Mirror newspaper on its front page alongside a photo of Johnson, while the Sun newspaper said “The French show no merci.”
The closing of the Channel Tunnel and ports to continue travel to France will affect the export of goods such as fish and shellfish from Scotland to Europe, and the import of food for British supermarkets if, as expected, drivers Europeans refuse to travel.
Trucks have been told to avoid Kent to prevent more trucks from piling up.
“France’s closure to UK traffic, including accompanied freight, poses difficulties for the UK’s ability to import and export key products during the busy Christmas period,” said Andrew Opie, Director of Food and Sustainability at British Retail Consortium.
“While goods can enter from France, few transport companies will be willing to send trucks and drivers to the UK without a guarantee that they can return to the EU in a timely manner.”
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