Their anger was sparked after numerous europhiles, including former Labour minister Lord Adonis, put the blame squarely on the UK leaving the EU. This narrow-minded assessment of a complicated issue was instantly shot down by Express.co.uk readers – who rightly pointed out there were a myriad of reasons behind the shortage.
One said: “It isn’t the fault of Brexit, it is the poor wages and treatment of drivers by management that is the main issue irrespective of which part of the EU or UK you come from!”
They added: “There have been three jobs in my locality for HGV Class 1 drivers and they are paying £1 p/h more than the national minimum wage…….
“Is it any wonder they haven’t been filled in the seven months they have been advertised?”
Another said: “Not rantings – the truth!”
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“Cheap EU labour undermined our skilled workers thereby creating profits for the bosses.
“That is the real reason for Remoaners. They wish to enslave us to cheap rates of work.”
Their views were supported by independent economist Julian Jessop, who branded comments from Remainers “misleading”.
He told Express.co.uk: “There are many reasons for the shortages of HGV drivers, with Brexit only playing a small part.
“The main factors are due to Covid, including a big fall in the number of driving tests, international travel restrictions and of course the ‘pingdemic’.”
Mr Jessop, who said Brexit was being made a “scapegoat”, added: “New tax rules known as IR35 have also raised the cost of agency drivers.
“And many other countries, including in the rest of Europe, are struggling with a lack of drives as their economies rebound.”
Nevertheless, Mr Jessop acknowledged the lack of EU workers to be one of the main reasons for a shortage of staff in the poultry industry.
He said: “The Government should relax the rules to make it easier for this sector to recruit from overseas.”
Speaking to Express.co.uk earlier this month, a spokeswoman for the Road Haulage Association made no reference to Brexit.
She said: “Right now we have a shortage of approximately 100,000 truck drivers.
“This, in addition to the effects of the ‘pingdemic’, means that supermarket shelves are not being refilled.
“Food distributors and manufacturers are struggling to cope with demand as the drivers needed to get the goods to the retailers just aren’t there.”
