The German Federal Association of Freight Transport, Logistics and Disposal (Bundesverbands Güterkraftverkehr Logistik und Entsorgung – BGL) has criticised the UK Government’s recent decision to relax drivers’ hours’ regulations. “The regulation increases the pressure on the drivers”, spokesman Dirk Engelhardt said to the German Press Agency earlier this week.
The BGL is the professional and central association of the transport and logistics industry in Germany, supporting around 7,000 member companies through its regional associations.
Dirk Engelhardt made the aforementioned comments when speaking about the Brexit consequences for road transport companies with the German Press Agency. During the interview, the BLG spokesperson emphasised that many German hauliers have foregone business with Great Britain since Brexit due to the bureaucratic difficulties they meet when declaring goods.
The complex new regulations make Great Britain particularly unattractive in spot traffic, Engelhardt is quoted as saying. In order to enable fast and free movement of goods between Great Britain and EU countries, he has called for so-called “green lanes” for goods traffic.
When listing the problems hauliers face after Brexit, Engelhardt sharply criticised the British government’s latest measure, namely the relaxation of drivers’ hours’ regulations. While the aim of the easing was to alleviate supply problems for supermarkets, the BGL spokesman believes it will only increase pressure on the drivers.
We’re aware of a shortage of HGV drivers, so I’m announcing a temp extension of drivers' hours rules from Mon 12 July, giving flexibility to drivers & operators to make slightly longer journeys. We’ve ramped up the number of driving tests available & will consider other measures.
— Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) July 7, 2021
On the 7th of July , the UK Government announced that drivers’ hours' rules would be “temporarily” extended as of Monday, July 12th to deal with the current driver shortage. The key points from the government’s announcement were that the relaxation was planned to apply until the end of the 8th of August and that the rules allowed for one hour of extra driving twice a week as well as shortened weekly rest periods.
British transportation figures have been vocal about a driver shortage of up to 100,000 lorry drivers, which have been blamed on the coronavirus pandemic, Brexit and the unattractiveness of the profession. Although the the BGL spokesman links the shortage to Brexit, the problem had been present for a long time before the virus and Brexit. It is also worth pointing out that there is a driver shortage in Germany too, something the BGL has acknowledged.
However, this summer, the UK transportation industry, farmers and supermarket chains have been pushing the government to do something about the aching shortage amid growing concerns about supply chain issues. As Trans.INFO reported earlier, a few supermarkets have been unable to provide a smooth supply of fresh salads in some regions due to the shortage, while Tesco says the driver shortage is causing them to waste 48 tonnes of food waste every week.
The aforementioned drivers' hours relaxation was one of the measures the UK Government took to react to the problem. However, Engelhardt believes this is not a genuine solution, stating “it won’t bring more drivers to the profession”.
Photo credit @ Trans.INFO