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Original poster

Why are the UK responsible for the stuck lorry drivers?

207 replies

Gleps · 23/12/2020 22:10

This might be a really silly question and I might be missing something obvious but I’d like to understand why the uk are responsible for all of the European lorry drivers who are stuck at Dover?

When this all started, it was down to us to get all the Brits living in places like Wuhan home. So why when the situation is reversed is it now our responsibility again?

OP posts:
donewithitalltodayandxmas · 23/12/2020 23:22

@titchy most of them are not visitors they are there own citizens so a little different

TicTacTwo · 23/12/2020 23:22

You can't repatriate the drivers because they need to stay with their vehicle. If you flew the drivers home, there would be thousands of empty lorries parked in Kent for a while that will be a target for criminals and take up space needed for future departures from Dover.

I think it's fair enough that countries look after foreign nationals on their soil. Johnson agreed to test drivers as a solution so must make that happen or we risk future potential issues with supply.

Is Macron getting any stick from other countries? Obviously there will be drivers with nationalities other than French and the drivers must be fuming that they are spending Xmas in the world's biggest traffic jam.

PerhapsOverlyWorried · 23/12/2020 23:22

@crackofdoom thanks, I missed that. Glad they’ve stepped in, it really should be further up the government though! Local councils have limited resources as it is, that situation must add a considerable burden

CaptainSandy · 23/12/2020 23:23

As much as we should help so should france as he has ditched his citizens and some were not happy

His citizens? Why are they Macron's citizens, they are largely not French.

Many countries have just shut their borders to the UK, not just France. France just happens to be the transit point for most of our road goods.

ktp100 · 23/12/2020 23:24

Do you have a Union Jack profile picture on Facebook, hun?

TicTacTwo · 23/12/2020 23:25

I don’t get why we had an obligation to our nationals who were stuck in other countries. Yet France don’t seem to have any obligations to their nationals stuck in another country.

The drivers aren't all French. They will come from all over the EU (Poland, Spain, Belgium...) - Calais is the common place where they drive through.

jay55 · 23/12/2020 23:28

I'm sure on the news it said some countries were doing repatriation flights but not until Monday. So some are trying to get their citizens home.

Siepie · 23/12/2020 23:28

The French are testing drivers in France who want to come to the UK; we are testing drivers in the UK who want to go to (or through) France. Each country is also responsible for the drivers waiting in their country - the same as when the channel closes for strikes, weather, etc.

Britain hasn't asked France for assistance, so the French authorities can't just come and muck in. Practically, there's very little the French could do to help the drivers in Britain. As someone else pointed out, HCPs, police officers, etc are only 'qualified' in their own country. I'm sure a French gendarme could direct lorries into queues just as well as a British bobby, but can you imagine the tabloid outrage if we had 'foreign police' telling drivers in Britain what to do!

donewithitalltodayandxmas · 23/12/2020 23:29

Some of you on here think your so superior the op asked a question at no point did she say we should not help but asked should france not be helping as well , a valid question
We don't actually know what is happening to drivers other side and I didn't think the border was shut from france to uk either
Plus are we not sending in army to do tests ? So that people can start to return

titchy · 23/12/2020 23:29

[quote donewithitalltodayandxmas]@titchy most of them are not visitors they are there own citizens so a little different [/quote]
No. The vast majority of the lorry drivers are NOT FRENCH.

Honeyroar · 23/12/2020 23:30

It won’t just be France, will it. There will be people unable to get on flights to-from many countries all over the world. It’s just that Dover is on the news. Many other countries have taken France’s stance. Lots of people wished the U.K. had done it with our borders back in the spring...

NiceGerbil · 23/12/2020 23:30

Not RT whole FT.

Why were they here OP? To bring food and goods.

As far as I can see the response of the UK has been a shambles.

Are you seriously suggesting that lorry drivers, who came here to deliver food for us to eat, on our Island. And who are now stuck after our government made an extremely ill advised statement (virus spreading out of control!). Should not be.. what. I don't think we're feeding them are we? Not much at least. Not sure. 4500 lorries ish that's 4500 people stuck in a queue on a motorway.

I'm not sure what you expect the French to do for them? The French are in France...

Do you really want to fuck off the people who bring food to our Island? I think that's a bad idea TBH.

donewithitalltodayandxmas · 23/12/2020 23:30

@Fauvist why call someone idiotic , some right jumped up people on here get over yourselfs

EileenGC · 23/12/2020 23:31

[quote donewithitalltodayandxmas]@Fauvist why call someone idiotic , some right jumped up people on here get over yourselfs [/quote]
Learn a little grammar and spelling first.

crackofdoom · 23/12/2020 23:32

Kent Online has some cracking photos of concerned local citizens donating food to the truckers, including a bunch of people poking cucumbers through the chain link fence at Manston Airport Grin

Charlie63849 · 23/12/2020 23:33

@NiceGerbil

Not RT whole FT.

Why were they here OP? To bring food and goods.

As far as I can see the response of the UK has been a shambles.

Are you seriously suggesting that lorry drivers, who came here to deliver food for us to eat, on our Island. And who are now stuck after our government made an extremely ill advised statement (virus spreading out of control!). Should not be.. what. I don't think we're feeding them are we? Not much at least. Not sure. 4500 lorries ish that's 4500 people stuck in a queue on a motorway.

I'm not sure what you expect the French to do for them? The French are in France...

Do you really want to fuck off the people who bring food to our Island? I think that's a bad idea TBH.

I’m guessing they got paid to bring the food/goods here ? It’s their job.

Emmanual Macron Shut the borders. We didn’t.

AcornAutumn · 23/12/2020 23:34

OP I think that Macron has treated them very badly but we must not do that. Does that make sense? It seems the law doesn’t protect the drivers or there’s no law to cover it or maybe it’s being ignored. Positions of power are just psychopaths making a mess.

I have no idea why Macron doesn’t have a sense of responsibility here, no. But if we have to take over where France should have stepped up, these are people working hard on essential jobs and must get help.

I hope to see the back of Macron.

Original poster
Gleps · 23/12/2020 23:35

A few people have actually given helpful responses that answer my question, thank you.

I genuinely believed if it was the other way round we’d be over there assisting with welfare provisions and taking responsibility to get them home.

I didn’t know that repatriation is the home countries responsibility (not that it is likely to be required in the situation) and welfare, testing etc is the responsibility of the country the people are trying to leave. It makes sense, just not how I believed it would happen.

OP posts:
donewithitalltodayandxmas · 23/12/2020 23:36

@titchy quite a few are french though none of us know exactly what nationality they are we don't have the percentages but some of them are french that is a fact

NiceGerbil · 23/12/2020 23:37

Also as per others.

Most of these lorries are not from France. They come through France because Calais Dover is the main route in.

With Brexit you'd had hoped that the government would have built more capacity etc through Antwerp, Rotterdam etc. And sorted out more places for where they come here. To avoid the massive queues.

This shows that this. Hasn't happened at all.

Great.

donewithitalltodayandxmas · 23/12/2020 23:37

@EileenGC I will when you learn some manners , ever thought maybe some people are dyslexic

titchy · 23/12/2020 23:38

Emmanual Macron Shut the borders. We didn’t

Presumably you'll be writing to your MP to arrange for South Africans who were due to come to the uk to be sent covid tests and aid yes? After all we just shut our border.

And it was a reasonable decision for Macron and 30% of the worlds other countries - 30% - to shut their borders to the UK.

Why hasn't OP been whinging about Australia or NZ shutting their borders? Bet OP banged on about shutting borders to China though.

Nasty nasty xenophobic thread this.

percheron67 · 23/12/2020 23:38

The Great Wave -- What on earth are you talking about?? Covid is real - nobody is scaremongering (to use a less offensive term!).

Charlie63849 · 23/12/2020 23:40

@EileenGC

When did someone call the grammar and spelling police?

Did it make you feel superior pointing it out Confused

Phoenix21 · 23/12/2020 23:41

Some posters are saying that the U.K. would provide (presumably) immediate help if it were the other way around.

Considering half the world has shut its gates to the U.K. we must have citizens all over the globe trying to get home - I’ve not seen any discussion about repatriation flights or Assistance? However in most cases people will get access to water/toilets in the country they are currently trapped in.

The German ambassador went to Dover to speak with some citizens today and I imagine those trapped are in discussion with their embassies.

I’m sure they don’t have the power to suddenly put up a few portaloos and showers on U.K. land, the U.K. goby should be doing that.

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