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People may have a hard time getting their Christmas orders on time this year, with a transport chief warning that the chaos at Britain’s largest port is “getting worse” and will lead to a “very challenging” holiday season.
Stock storage before Brexit, coronavirusand a backlog of around 11,000 containers of PPE at the Suffolk port of Felixstowe have been accused of creating lengthy delays and preventing retailers from receiving stocks in the run-up to Christmas.
Rod McKenzie, managing director of policy for the Trucking Association, told Sky News that the accumulation of PPE, the impact of store closings, and increased demand for online ordering had increased pressure on what is already It is the busiest time of year for shipping and transportation. Industries
He said the domino effect means people in the UK and Ireland won’t get their Christmas Orders on time, especially if stores remain closed after the end of England’s closure on December 2.
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“This is the busiest time of year for the trucking industry and the world of home delivery, even earlier COVID-19 and lock up, “he told Sky News.
“But it will be particularly crazy this year because of the pandemic and what is happening in Felixstowe.
“If your items arrive in a shipping container from abroad and it is delayed [because there is no space in the port], you may not have it for Christmas. “
He cautioned consumers to order now if they want to make sure gifts arrive on time, adding: “[The situation] It is getting worse. Even if the lockdown ends on December 2 and Felixstowe clears, we will still have a challenging Christmas. “
Rod McKenzie said people may not have the items they need in time for Christmas
The port of Felixstowe receives 3,000 ships every year. Around 17 shipping lines operate from there, traveling to more than 700 ports around the world.
Last week, a Taiwanese ship was forced to turn around and dock in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, after being told that a docking space would not be available for 10 days.
Sky News understands that cases like this are rare. But while the accumulation of PPE is causing delays, the pressure on global supply lines due to COVID and the shortage of transport trucks compared to demand they also contribute to delays.
It will have an impact on large retailers like supermarkets, even small businesses, McKenzie said.
He added that there was a “common misconception” that the port only served the surrounding region, but that articles from there are heading to the UK and Ireland, meaning it has a far-reaching impact.
He also described the situation at the port as a “disaster”.
“There are 11,000 containers of PPE shipped from China just sitting on the dock,” he said. “There’s a lot of stuff stuck on the ships that they can’t unload and the trucks can’t pick up. The whole system is deteriorating.”
McKenzie said the situation may get worse when the Brexi The transition period passes at the end of the year, warning: “And January … is not a pretty picture. We are all very interconnected.”
The stores are closed until early December at least and it’s unclear when they will reopen
An operational note posted on behalf of the Hutchinson Ports owners on the Felixstowe website said the delays would continue “at least through December and possibly into the new year.”
The note also said that the company was working with the government to remove the PPE containers “as quickly as possible” and that it should be dispatched within four weeks.
A statement from the port said: “We continue to work closely with our customers and other stakeholders to address the impact of current global supply chain pressures on the flow of goods through UK ports.”
“Global supply chains are still under pressure, but we have a plan to address the specific problems at Felixstowe.
“We are increasing the level of available resources, developing additional storage capacity, and working with customers and partners to phase out long-term containers as quickly as possible to reduce congestion.”
“We are grateful to our employees at the Port of Felixstowe, who continue to work extremely hard under difficult circumstances, as they have during the COVID pandemic, to serve our customers and deliver for the UK.”
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Vaccine could be affected by Brexit delays
In what could be a precursor to some of the challenges Christmas shoppers face, the creators of the new PlayStation and Xbox consoles they have warned their latest products it will be difficult to obtain due to the pandemic.
Microsoft CFO Tim Stuart said the company expects the shortage of the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, which launched on November 10, to continue through April 2021.
The PS5 arrives in the UK on Thursday, but Sony’s Jim Ryan cautioned that many fans are likely to be disappointed.
He told the BBC that the company was “blown away” by the level of pre-orders, saying: “We are making more PS5s in this difficult environment and then making PS4s on that launch.
“If people can’t find one at launch, we’re really sorry and we apologize for that.”
