Name? Boris Johnson
Westphalian identity? British, very British
Age? 57
Why is he in the news? Boris Johnson’s United Kingdom is currently experiencing a bit of a fuel shortage. Not because there is not enough fuel in the UK, but because truck drivers distributing the fuel are missing. Over the course of this week, we have seen long lines of people waiting to pump fuel, trying to hoard fuel. A scenario our friend Bojo is hoping to resolve by using army truck drivers as substitutes.
Why do we care? A few months ago we discussed empty supermarket shelves in Northern Ireland due to Brexit, this scenario has now reached England as well. Boris Johnson promised the UK prosperity beyond imagination after Brexit and now is ordering army truck drivers to help resolve the situation. He also hopes that the approximately 100.000 missing truck drivers will emerge from the well trained and ready to work British population.
Why should you care? Empty promises by populists of all kinds always have to be upheld to the same standards as everyone else. Therefore, holding Johnson accountable for his actions and words is vital. Also one can’t help themselves but feel mischievous about these types of stories. You should care 6/10 about holding politicians accountable.
Who else cares? France’s European Affairs Minister Clément Beaune. He rejected Johnson’s idea of issuing 5000 3-month visas to EU truck drivers to ease the current situation and said that “every day, we see the intellectual fraud that was Brexit”. Meanwhile, the EU itself is currently battling high energy prices, but for Beaune’s luck they are not producing the same situation as in the UK.
Any further comments? Overall Boris is onto something here. If your nationals are not willing to do a job because of the quality and pay, then you might want to think about raising standards instead of finding foreigners who will do it for cheaper …
