Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 15th August 2024 Issue no. 1127
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Logistics industry needs permanent solution to Operation Brock
With traffic set to increase travel times and congestion through the ports between continental Europe and the UK this weekend thanks to school holidays, Logistics UK is urging the UK Government to identify and implement a permanent alternative to its Operation Brock traffic management scheme - the contraflow system set up to keep traffic on the M20 and surrounding roads in Kent moving during busy periods and which will be in place until 3rd June to manage the anticipated Bank Holiday surge in vehicles.
As Nichola Mallon, Logistics UK's Head of Trade explains, this will once again have an impact on those trying to keep goods moving to and from GB and Europe:
"Since the Brexit vote, the logistics industry has been subjected to delays caused by the deployment of Operation Brock, yet a permanent solution to the plan has yet to be found. While held in the queues along the M20, drivers have no access to refreshments or toilet facilities often for hours on end - a situation which would not be tolerated by workers in offices, factories or any other setting. This is not an acceptable situation.
"Logistics workers were deemed 'essential' to the UK's economy during the pandemic, but they are being failed every time Brock is deployed. And with the new Entry and Exit System set to be implemented by the EU in October this year at the juxtaposed borders at the Short Straits, Operation Brock looks set to become a permanent feature.
"Those providing deliveries and carrying UK exports to the EU deserve to spend their legally mandated breaks away from their vehicles to get sufficient rest. A permanent solution for Operation Brock is needed, and fast, before hauliers decide not to fulfil contracts to deliver to the UK. As Logistics UK has been saying for some time, logistics operators need the support of Government to ensure that the UK's borders do not become a barrier to the movement of goods."
23rd May 2024