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The government has urged passenger and cargo carriers to avoid Kent ports after France imposed a blanket ban on arrivals from the UK.
The Port of Dover has halted all exports to France for at least 48 hours, after the Emmanuel Macron government joined Ireland and a growing list of European countries to impose travel restrictions in the UK on a new strain of coronavirus.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps warned of a “significant disruption” in Kent, adding: “We are asking the public and in particular carriers not to travel to Kent ports or other routes to France.”
Trucks queue for the Port of Dover along the A20 in Kent before the end of the Brexit transition period (Photo: December 18)
French Transport Minister Jean-Baptiste Djebbari also tweeted on Sunday, saying the country would suspend all traffic from the UK from midnight for at least 48 hours.
The ban also includes all incoming cargo accompanied by road, air, sea or rail, which means any movement of goods that requires a person to move it.
Scotland’s Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said the prime minister should seek an extension of the Brexit transition period due to potential chaos in ports.
It is now imperative that the prime minister seeks a deal to extend the Brexit transition period, “he tweeted.
“The new strain of Covid, and its various implications, means that we are facing a deeply grave situation and it demands our 100% attention. It would be inconceivable to exacerbate it with Brexit.”
Rod McKenzie of the Road Transport Association told Sky News that 10,000 trucks a day crossed between Dover and Calais in France.
He added: “The gathering of Brexit is one thing, the Christmas fever is something else, but the absolute blow now is to close the borders for 48 hours.”
“That is a serious disruption to the entire important supply chain.”
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) warned that France’s closure to UK traffic, including trucks, would create “difficulties for UK imports and exports in the busy Christmas season.”
Andrew Opie, BRC’s director of food and sustainability, said any “prolonged” outages would be a problem in the run-up to the end of the Brexit transition period on December 31.
“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,” he said.
Logistics UK, formerly the Freight Transport Association, which is headquartered in Tunbridge Wells, tweeted: “Logistics UK is aware of the news that escorted freight will not be allowed to France for 48 hours, we are concerned for the welfare of the drivers and we are urgently seeking more information for our members. “
Tory Kent MP Sir Roger Gale urged Number 10 and Michael Gove, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, to “control” the developing situation with the border between Great Britain and France.
He tweeted: “Canal travel chaos. Don’t try to blame the Department of Transportation. It’s time for Number Ten and the ‘CDL’ to take hold.”
A government spokesman echoed Shapps’ statement, saying: “We expect a significant disruption in Kent following the French government’s announcement that as of 11pm on Sunday 20 December it will not accept UK passengers for the next 48 hours. “
“As a result, we urge everyone, including carriers, to avoid traveling to Kent ports until further notice.
“We are working closely with the Kent Resilience Forum, Kent Council and Highways England to ensure that contingency measures are urgently in place to manage the disruption, and the Prime Minister will chair a COBR meeting tomorrow to discuss the situation.”
Sky News understands that there are “contingency measures” in case the outage lasts more than 48 hours, which could affect the importation of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID vaccine from Belgium.
Boris Johnson to hold an emergency COBRA meeting to discuss the chaos caused in the ports
Germany, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU, announced that it would convene emergency talks later to coordinate the response of the 27 member states of the bloc.
Boris Johnson will hold an emergency COBRA meeting on Monday “to discuss the situation regarding international travel, in particular the constant flow of cargo to and from the UK.”
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