Bling

Thanks for posting the photos @Janet Disappointed I couldn't make today. Looks like a nice location

I couldn't make it today. Anyone remember to take any photos ?

I am not that fussed on Supermarket Ian although I was not too happy on Monday to find the shelves empty. Meat and water seemed to be the main shortages along with other shelves but I didn't look to see what was meant to be on those. Apparently milk is having to be destroyed now due to the driver shortage. They are also forecasting risks to the electricity supply this winter. Something else to look forward to.

Agreed. If facts from people in the industry and photos do not fit with your view of the world, so be it. I'm out 👍

I took those two photos on Monday evening in my local Sainsburys

It is indeed complex with more factors at play but things like Brexit and the Pandemic are big contributors. IR35 is another element specific to HGV drivers. a friend runs a company that supplies both HGV drivers and manned trucks to companies across the UK. IR35 is one of the factors that is causing him headaches in trying to get HGV drivers. "explain to us HOW Brexit and IR35 caused the issue THIS MONTH, but in the months previous we had no issue" We didn't feel it before because we were in the pandemic and demand was subdued. Now demand has ramped up, the shortage of labour is becoming apparent. " the issue is now being alleviated and normal service is resuming" Panic buying has fuelled the shortage of petrol but in the south east, three weeks after it started there is still shortage. Last night, I drove past 4 petrol stations and they were all shut. That is not normal service resuming. There is also a shortage of certain foods and this winter we will be running close to break even on electricity. Is that panic buying too?

The petrol shortage is due to shortage of labour due to Brexit and IR35. in April 2020, IR35 put the onus of liability on to the companies resulting in many stopping the employment of contractors. Many HGV drivers prefer to remain Contractors resulting in them not wanting to work for U.K. companies now only offering permanent roles. Those who are from the EU and do want to work as permanent employees face Brexit challenges. I am not saying IR35 is a bad thing, it just one of the factors affecting the current state. It is the combination of a number of things, not one easy fix.

I concur with Doug. The combination of the Pandemic and Brexit have left the UK in a dire situation, much like the Eastern Block in the 1970s. We have isolated ourselves economically with Brexit, much like the Eastern Block. Obviously not as extreme but we have made it much harder to move goods and labour to the UK. The pandemic has created some systemic issues that will not resolve themselves quickly, resulting in a global shortage of labour and goods/produce in certain sectors. The result is that large trading blocks and countries like the EU and the US have far more buying power and therefore get priority for things in short supply, hence our petrol shortages and empty shelves. What compounds this is also the fact we are not self sufficient and do not produce or manufacture enough of anything. See the photos below I took on Monday evening this week of empty shelves. Another factor is the tightening of IR35 rules in April last year that will have the affect of many HGV drivers who are employed on contract to prefer working in the EU rather than the UK. The combination of all these factors does has resulted in the current situation and does not bode well for the future 😒

Looking good @Dan E

Just enough to roam the country for petrol stations with petrol and then sit in a loooong queue 🙃

I guess the latest challenge posed by my new baby. We all make mistakes and sparky was quick to react and his put on his best impression of an AA man. Luckily Sparky managed to clean most of the oil and no more smoking on the way home. Initially, seeing smoke billowing through the rear view mirror just behind my head, I thought the engine had caught fire 🔥 I was relieved to see it was caused by the oil landing on the exhaust. The next challenge will be finding some petrol as the yellow petrol light started to come on when navigating bends in the last two miles.

It has been a while. I only drove it for 2 days before dropping it off with Sparky. Good to know it has had a thorough service and going over though. A few bits left to do next time 😉 Very grateful for Sparky's patience with my new toy

Sounds like a fab trip. Looking forward to more details and photos Ian.

Is that what you get when you cross a GT3 with a G-Turbo=an Excel ?