London is trying to find a solution to restart cross-channel traffic

The deficit-stricken United Kingdom on Tuesday allowed the resumption of cross-channel goods shipments to find a way out of the crisis with France, facing the spread of a highly contagious variant of the new corona virus.

The strong cycle of this new virus in Great Britain, with its prevalence at 40 to 70% higher than the United Kingdom estimates for the World Health Organization (WHO), changed the outcome of the year in the puzzle for Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

To reach a post-Brexit trade deal with Brussels within 10 days of the deadline, he had to reconcile 16 million Britons in the disaster over the weekend, with its Christmas family reunited. He now has to manage the decision of dozens of countries, including France, to ban imports from the United Kingdom, which will threaten trade and have no immediate effect, causing a shortage of new products in the coming days. .

At a meeting of its ambassadors scheduled for Tuesday, the European Union (EU) sought to “re-open the border in a coordinated manner,” a European diplomatic source said. This includes allowing “targeted returns” of passengers and truck drivers who have stopped themselves from being brutally executed since this weekend.

Among the solutions proposed by London were tests for drivers of hundreds of lorries stranded in the south-east of the UK, who were prevented from reaching the continent after deciding to suspend France for 48 hours on Sunday evening. Visit from the UK.

Screening in ports is “absolutely part of the debate,” UK Home Secretary Priti Patel told Sky News on Tuesday morning.

“We are discussing with our French colleagues,” he promised, “and we will find a solution.”

According to the minister, 650 lorries are currently blocked on the motorway from London to Dover port, with the main cross-channel port closed to outbound traffic from Sunday evening. More than 800 heavy goods vehicles are parked at the nearby former airport.

– Cereal menu –

Although the products for Christmas food are greatly regretted by the restrictions on the spread of the disease, the situation continues to be one of fear of disruptions in supply if they are preserved as they have already been delivered on British soil.

According to Andrew Oppy, one of the leaders of the British Retail Federation, an organization that represents distributors, “we must work more or less independently from tomorrow (Wednesday) to ensure that the boundaries do not really exist. He told the BBC: “Disruptions in the supply of shops. Salads, vegetables, fresh fruit are not seen” directly after Christmas.

The fear is strong as the days count down to the end of the post-Brexit transition period on December 31st. Trade talks between London and Brussels have not yet been successful, raising fears that the failure to disrupt quotas and tariffs could severely disrupt the country’s supply.

Road Transport Association general manager Rod McKenzie said stranded drivers were given a “grain bar” Monday by the local Kent community. “Very rarely, I think, should we support them morally,” he told the BBC. In addition, there is the “big issue” of accessing toilets and the health issue.

During a news conference late Monday, Boris Johnson said he had discussed the situation with French President Emmanuel Macron, who, according to him, wanted to “resolve the situation in the coming hours.”

According to a European source on Tuesday, Mr Johnson met with European Commission President Ursula van der Leyen on Monday evening to discuss post-Brexit talks and the epidemic.

The head of the British government, who has been criticized for managing an epidemic that has killed nearly 68,000 people in Europe’s largest population, has argued that the risks posed by “single” truck drivers are “really low”.