Several UK petrol stations have closed as a shortage of truck drivers stretches some of the country’s vital supply chains close to breaking point.
British oil giant BP temporarily closed some of its 1,200 UK petrol stations on Friday due to a lack of unleaded and diesel grades, which it blamed on driver shortages.
ExxonMobil’s Esso said a small number of its 200 Tesco Alliance retail sites had also been affected.
Queues formed at some petrol stations in London and the southern English county of Kent on Friday as motorists rushed to fill up, Reuters news agency reported.
But Transport Secretary Grant Shapps insisted there was no fuel shortage, saying the government was taking steps to recruit more drivers.
“The advice would be to carry on as normal,” he told UK broadcaster Sky News, after other officials warned the public against panic-buying, Aljazeera reports.
