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Its been made clear for a number of years that supply chain shock was likely due to market uncertainity and the inability of business to plan because the government haven't manage to get firm long term trade agreements in place. So government lack of understanding of logistics and business planning has to go top of the list. HGV drivers need to be top of the list of things you think of when you think of logistics - you are short of everything if you don't have enough of them.
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Fragility of the employment market for HGV - namely poor pay and working conditions. This has been driven by market forces so thats business and the public. And there's not been any oversight about national security issues stemming from that, which should have been a government concern (see point 1)
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Covid added to market fragility. Working from home, drove up demand for deliveries and delivery drivers. Whilst at the same time working from home led to a drop in fuel useage. Fuel firms needs to satisfy less demand so will have laid off drivers or drivers have left for better paid jobs. This lack of driver retention by petrol and diesel suppliers has meant when demand has increased as people have returned to work, they've been unable to meet that demand. Thats then driven the current panic. Petrol and diesel come above a lack of HGV drivers in terms of what you need to get goods from one place to another. Again another national security related issue. (See points 1 and 2)
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The complexity and the interlinking of businesses mean that a problem in one area, ripples through and gets increasing worse leading to a crisis point which can be difficult to resolve. Realistically government should have civil contigence planning for things of national importance such as food and fuel security. It appears there is a certain lack of this. Long supply chains without multiple alternatives are more vulnerable to problems than short ones with multiple sources. So outsourcing abroad and moving further from self sufficiency makes us more vulnerable. Thats strategic planning and politics. But its also driven by desire for low costs. (Thats points 1 to 3 summed up in terms of national security issues)
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I think there is a good argument here for issues about moving business and manufacturing abroad being a much bigger issue than immigrants 'taking all our jobs'. A cycle of outsourcing as employment moves abroad to exploit lower regulation and lower wages has fueled unemployment and poverty here. Public desire for rock bottom prices is in no small part due to high levels of inequality and poverty. Ultimately government is responsible for not addressing this over a long period. Nor do you resolve that by deregulating here which is being pitched, if your largest export market still requires those standards and protects against exploitation. You perhaps look at the exploitation and you value your domestic workers more because they offer greater national security. Again, a public, business and government issue.
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However it is pretty clear that the biggest issue is the conflict of interest between government and business leaders who have for many decades, disregarded and ignored the issue of domestic security issues such as food, fuel and health security. And the public have taken it for granted that the government is there to serve them first and not the interests of big businesses. In reality there should be a sweet spot to balance the needs of all three which are the basis of economic and political stability.
The following has just been point out to me by an old MN friend:
Emergency Food Reserves
German national food reserves are calculated for 84 million people for 6 weeks, totalling 800,000 metric tons.
Stored in ~150 huge warehouses around the country.
Contrast to the UK where successive govts cba about food reserves:
evaq8.co.uk/FoodSecurity.html
Almost unbelievable irresponsibility 🤬
House of Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, Food security; Second Report of Session 2014–15
www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201415/cmselect/cmenvfru/243/243.pdf
"The United Kingdom holds no strategic food reserves [wtf !]
and overall reserves run to just a few days.
Responsibility falls on farmers and supermarkets: 🤬 [wtf !]
Levels of self-sufficiency in fruit and vegetables have fallen the most,
and farmers should seek to extend the seasonal production of fresh fruit and vegetables "
Conclusion
Let me put it another way. If we were to have a real major disaster - particularly in a major city - on the scale that many countries around the world do experience regularly, we could well be begging for help from the UN for the very basics.
We are just one major crisis away from civil breakdown. If it happened we would see wide spread civil unrest as well as food shortages.
That very much is a government issue. The buck must stop with government. What are the government for, if it is not to protect the national interest in terms of food, fuel and health security? It does not serve the interests of anyone but the most wealthy if it doesn't consider these seriously
With that in mind, those who can might well be advised to consider how they could cope if the shops did close for a fortnight.
The fragility of where we are, isn't being stated anywhere near as strongly as it should be.
It is deeply, deeply troubling.