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Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

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101–110 of 352 posts

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What would they need to do to convince you they don't intend to punish the UK? Would they try to force migrant workers to work in the UK, even against applicable UK law? Other EU politicians have been quite diplomatic and friendly during the whole thing. A lot unlike a certain Prime Minister from a former EU member I could name.

Just an observation. Ever since the announcement it seems like various groups on Reddit and elsewhere want to celebrate every difficulty that the UK experiences.

I think it's UK remainers pointing out the difficulties. Which is somewhat understandable considering:

- Their political opponents have spent months dismissing their concerns as scaremongering.

- Many would still like us to rejoin the EU at some point. So it makes sense to point out the advantages of doing so.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#102

Unlike the toilet paper panic buying there is limited capacity people can buy, so I would expect this to naturally end short term when people don’t have capacity to buy any more. What concerns me is government planning to address this looks a lot more forward looking than a few days/a week, so I can see it getting worse. Interesting how the government say it’s not a shortage, if the refineries were running low you wo…

> Unlike the toilet paper panic buying there is limited capacity people can buy, so I would expect this to naturally end short term when people don’t have capacity to buy any more. Didn't the Colonial Pipeline attack have people filling up plastic bags with gas?

I think the photo you reference that was going round at the time was an old one from Brazil or Mexico or somewhere.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What would they need to do to convince you they don't intend to punish the UK? Would they try to force migrant workers to work in the UK, even against applicable UK law? Other EU politicians have been quite diplomatic and friendly during the whole thing. A lot unlike a certain Prime Minister from a former EU member I could name.

Just an observation. Ever since the announcement it seems like various groups on Reddit and elsewhere want to celebrate every difficulty that the UK experiences.

As a Polish citizen I want to see post-Brexit UK struggle, so that my government doesn't get any stupid ideas of leaving EU.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#104
post #3

It’s incredibly sad it’s come to this, but it’s an entirely self inflicted pain. Voters were lied to and this is the result.

I'm sure we'll all shed a tear because 'brenda #fbpeu' had to queue up for some petrol she didn't need.

The reason more tears haven't been shed is probably because the consequences are so terrible nobody on either side had the will to enforce the original terms and timelines and Tories will try to kick this can down the road for as long as politically possible, perhaps much longer.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#105

Unlike the toilet paper panic buying there is limited capacity people can buy, so I would expect this to naturally end short term when people don’t have capacity to buy any more. What concerns me is government planning to address this looks a lot more forward looking than a few days/a week, so I can see it getting worse. Interesting how the government say it’s not a shortage, if the refineries were running low you wo…

As Brian Madderson, chairman of the Petrol Retailers Association, explained on BBC Breakfast this morning. This happened because a BP document was leaked to the media, which unsurprisingly got them excited about a possible shortage and led to the panic buying. Madderson also said the industry is used to dealing with about 2 million liters of fuel being required a week, but that's with typical weekly fill-ups. He suggested that's effectively doubled now as people fill their tanks to the brim, which you can't keep up with under any circumstances. So there's no shortage in the industry, only a shortage created by consumers changing their behaviour overnight.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#106

Unlike the toilet paper panic buying there is limited capacity people can buy, so I would expect this to naturally end short term when people don’t have capacity to buy any more. What concerns me is government planning to address this looks a lot more forward looking than a few days/a week, so I can see it getting worse. Interesting how the government say it’s not a shortage, if the refineries were running low you wo…

> when people don’t have capacity to buy any more. I'm confused, can't they just fill up jerry cans, or if garages aren't allowing this, just siphon the fuel out of the car at home?

You’re technically limited to storing a certain quantity of fuel on your property without a license. Whether a regulator could detect this is another question.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's quite a claim. Do you have some strong evidence to back it up? The electoral commission went to great lengths and expense to find any wrong doing and came up with nothing. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/20... Edit: Rant alert: It really irks me that the people who call the Brexit election unfair, don't seem to acknowledge that Britain was never given any kind of referendum when joini…

https://brexitlies.com/ There's a handy dropdown that lets you pick the lie you want to explore. EDIT: I replied to the wrong comment accidentally due to the delayed rendering from an HN helper extension I use, my apologies. I can't delete the comment once someone has replied to it.

That's all good and well, but I don't think it answered my question about a source for accusations of Russian involvement, nor did it address my question about the lack of democratic process when joining the EU, so I'm not entirely sure why you posted this.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#108

Unlike the toilet paper panic buying there is limited capacity people can buy, so I would expect this to naturally end short term when people don’t have capacity to buy any more. What concerns me is government planning to address this looks a lot more forward looking than a few days/a week, so I can see it getting worse. Interesting how the government say it’s not a shortage, if the refineries were running low you wo…

I think it was unclear as to why there is no gas. Is it because there are no drivers to drive the gas to the stations or because the general energy supply for GB currently sucks?

Currently tanker drivers need extra certification but are still treated badly by employers. There is currently high demand for HGV drivers generally with big incentives to move employers. Therefore, some fuel tanker drivers have left to work elsewhere and can not be so easily replaced.

Lots of truck drivers have left the industry after suffering years of poor pay and conditions. The licencing scheme is not so simple that they can return on a whim either.

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#109
post #18
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I honestly think Brexit was only a very small part of this. It's probably also a combination of IR35 making the entire endeavour not worthwhile for UK AND European workers and the government not having enough HGV tests available to bring newly qualified drivers into the workforce. It's a combination of a lot of different things.

Only on a programmers' forum could this all be IR35's fault! (could well be true - but i did laugh out loud)

IR35 doesn't just apply to programmers, it applies to everyone performing individual contract work through a Limited Company, (as originally recommended/insisted upon by the Inland Revenue).

Re: Pumps run dry at gas stations in Britain

#110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People on the whole do not know what "panic buying" actually is. I've had multiple conversations which run along the line of "I'm not panic buying, I am rational. I'm only buying this because others are panicking and there wont be any left for me. "

Sounds like they do understand panic buying. The issue is that it's completely rational on an individual level. "Panic" buying isn't really a good term for it.

The issue is that everyone thinks they are rational, there's not a bunch of people panicking and another bunch of people reacting to them. There's just one bunch!

So yes the term is wrong but also people don't know what it is, and how they negatively contribute to the cycle.

People don't panic when they "panic buy". People don't see themselves as panic buying and they are not reflective

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