Cameron tells motorists "fill your tanks" for fear of fuel strike - do not panic buy
56 replies, posted
[B]The government has urged people to take "sensible precautions" in case a strike by fuel tanker drivers goes ahead.
[/B]PM David Cameron said motorists [B]need not queue but should top up their tanks[/B], and Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude [B]advised storing petrol in a jerrycan in their garage[/B].The advice has prompted criticism with the Fire Brigades Union urging Mr Maude to withdraw his statement.
[B]Unite union drivers, who supply 90% of UK forecourts, have voted to strike.[/B]
Conciliation service Acas had said it would contact the five oil firms affected and Unite to agree a timetable for talks aimed at resolving their differences.
Unite has said it "[B]welcomed the prospect of meaningful talks[/B]" via the service.
Assistant general secretary Diana Holland said the union was waiting for a formal invitation to participate in the talks, adding that it had "said all along that we want a negotiated settlement through meaningful talks".
There are some reports of shortages of fuel at petrol stations, with [B]Esso saying it had seen increased demand in some areas [/B]while Shell reported it was "business as normal".
In a statement Esso said: "[B]Some sites may temporarily be out of one or two types of fuel.[/B]"
Mr Cameron, who is currently chairing a meeting of the civil contingencies committee Cobra, earlier said: "[B]There is no imminent strike. The unions would have to give seven days' notice of any strike so there is no need to queue to buy petrol.[/B]
[B]"If there is an opportunity to top up your tank if a strike is potentially on the way, then it is a sensible thing if you are able to do that."[/B]
Mr Maude advised: "[B]The greater extent to which people have fuel in their vehicles - maybe a little bit in the garage as well in a jerrycan - the longer we can keep things going.[/B]"
But Fire Brigades Union general secretary Matt Wrack criticised the advice, saying: "There is a real danger[B] the public will start storing fuel in inappropriate ways if the government is encouraging panic-buying and storage[/B]. This advice is wrong and must be withdrawn."
Mr Maude told the BBC's Radio 4 World at One programme: "There are legal limits on what you can store and I'm sure the fire service will communicate those.
"What people have in mind, there are sensible low-key things that can be done and if they choose to do it - it's up to them."
He said people were reacting sensibly and where there were opportunities to fill up fuel they were doing so.
As he headed into the Cobra meeting, his colleague[B] Transport Minister Mike Penning defended the comments and said that people had stored petrol at home for many years[/B].
Speaking also on the World at One, Brian Madderson, from the Retail Motor Industry Federation, said[B] the government and the public had to keep "a cool head".[/B]
He said: "[B]This government appears intent on creating a crisis[/B] out of a serious concern."
"Yesterday we polled a good proportion of our members right across the UK and [B]petrol was 45% up compared to a normal Tuesday[/B] and diesel was 20% up."
At the Cobra meeting, Mr Cameron is to be briefed on measures to minimise the possible impact of any strike,[B] including using military drivers, the possibility of recruiting foreign tanker drivers and setting up fuel stockpiles.
[/B]
[B]Ministers and officials are expected to also discuss the impact a strike would have on the emergency services, other vital services and supermarket deliveries.[/B]
There are plans to put military personnel through an eight-day training course to enable them to take the place of striking drivers behind the wheel of commercial tankers.
The BBC has learned that more than 80 "highly qualified" drivers from the Royal Air Force will begin initial training by one oil haulage firm on Wednesday.
[B]
Mr Cameron said there was "absolutely no justification" for a strike [/B]and earlier Chancellor George Osborne and Energy Secretary Ed Davey warned it could damage economic recovery.
[IMG]http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20080427&t=2&i=4038615&w=&fh=&fw=&ll=460&pl=300&r=2008-04-27T173040Z_01_L25868888_RTRUKOP_0_PICTURE0[/IMG]
[URL]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17533151[/URL]
Don't panic-buy, but buy lots of it immediately? okay
Where's that picture with the news guy and it says PANIC at the bottom?
Are these drivers striking over pay or the fuel surcharge?
[QUOTE=markg06;35330465]Are these drivers striking over pay or the fuel surcharge?[/QUOTE]
Working conditions
I thought the military were trained to transport fuel?
[QUOTE=carcarcargo;35330534]I thought the military were trained to transport fuel?[/QUOTE]
They are, doesn't mean they should do it all the time though.. they have other things to do...
[QUOTE=d0m1n1c1;35331039]They are, doesn't mean they should do it all the time though.. they have other things to do...[/QUOTE]
this is a very important situation though, without fuel our country will grind to a halt (literally).
Is anyone here old enough to remember the week long strike in 2000? I was only 9 but I remember queuing for miles because of panic buying
This was 2000:
[img]http://img.thesun.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01478/SNN2704NEW-_1478558a.jpg[/img]
[QUOTE=matt.ant;35331121]Is anyone here old enough to remember the week long strike in 2000? I was only 9 but I remember queuing for miles because of panic buying
This was 2000:
[img]http://img.thesun.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01478/SNN2704NEW-_1478558a.jpg[/img][/QUOTE]
Shit that's nothing. Shoulda seen America right after 9/11
[QUOTE=-nesto-;35331177]Shit that's nothing. Shoulda seen America right after 9/11[/QUOTE]
I can't tell if you're joking.
[QUOTE=-nesto-;35331177]Shit that's nothing. Shoulda seen America right after 9/11[/QUOTE]
That picture is just an example, my family got stranded on holiday because everywhere ran out of petrol.
Everyone is now panic buying. Loads of my friends are posting on facebook about how they can't find petrol. They're new to driving so I guess they're naive.
Half the people driving at the moment dont really need to drive, there is nothing wrong with putting the car and getting to work on a bicycle for example.
Cameron really fucked up.
Now his ministers are saying [B][I]people are going to die because of fuel strikes[/I][/B]
Day 1: We have the military ready to take over, no worries.
Day 2: WE'RE ALL GOING TO FUCKING DIE
Are scare tactics to get the people on your side all you've got? Will you really sink that low?
So now my friends are [b]driving[/b] from petrol station to petrol station looking for somewhere with petrol. The logic is unbelievable.
I remember there was once a power outage for a week here, and the lines at the pump stretched for blocks.
The funny thing was that two of the lines were going opposite directions, but ended facing eachother at the same pumps, trapping the drivers.
Panic buying feeds into the [I]point[/I] of these strikes. Fuel stations don't stock their tanks full, they stock enough to last to the next resupply. When you say "Everyone's gonna be out of gas!" and everyone goes and buys gas, then YEAH. EVERYONE'S GONNA BE OUT OF GAS CAUSE YOU JUST MADE THEM RUN OUT WITH YOUR SCARE TACTICS.
[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;35332075]Panic buying feeds into the [I]point[/I] of these strikes. Fuel stations don't stock their tanks full, they stock enough to last to the next resupply. When you say "Everyone's gonna be out of gas!" and everyone goes and buys gas, then YEAH. EVERYONE'S GONNA BE OUT OF GAS CAUSE YOU JUST MADE THEM RUN OUT WITH YOUR SCARE TACTICS.[/QUOTE]
It reminds me of when people sell stocks because people are going to sell stocks.
[QUOTE=Hidole555;35330399]Where's that picture with the news guy and it says PANIC at the bottom?[/QUOTE]
[IMG]http://i39.tinypic.com/15y9d00.jpg[/IMG]
Watch as I get banned for this post, also fyi its Tony Kornheiser from pti
This would be a great wakeup call for everyone to at least try public transport... HOWEVER, that now too, costs a bomb, I feel like our country is sometimes just an internal retardation
Time to dust off your unicycles guys
[QUOTE=znk666;35332575]Time to dust off your unicycles guys[/QUOTE]
One does enjoy a jolly commute on ones penny farthing!
[editline]28th March 2012[/editline]
stiff upper-lip chaps and all that, what
I wish people wouldn't panic buy when they don't need it. I commute 80 miles a day and genuinely need fuel for my car. :(
[QUOTE=MrEndangered;35331790]Cameron really fucked up.
Now his ministers are saying [B][I]people are going to die because of fuel strikes[/I][/B]
Day 1: We have the military ready to take over, no worries.
Day 2: WE'RE ALL GOING TO FUCKING DIE
Are scare tactics to get the people on your side all you've got? Will you really sink that low?[/QUOTE]
Except he didn't use scare tactics. All he said was that it would be a wise idea to top up if you get the opportunity. That is hardly the equivilant of saying: "OMFG FUEL IS GOING TO RUN OUT!!! PANIC BUY NOW OR ELSE!!!". You can't blame someone for saying one thing and people blowing it out of proportion and panicking as a result (aka being stupid).
Although Mr Maude's comment was a bit ill-informed.
[QUOTE=David29;35333681]Except he didn't use scare tactics. All he said was that it would be a wise idea to top up if you get the opportunity. That is hardly the equivilant of saying: "OMFG FUEL IS GOING TO RUN OUT!!! PANIC BUY NOW OR ELSE!!!". You can't blame someone for saying one thing and people blowing it out of proportion and panicking as a result (aka being stupid).
Although Mr Maude's comment was a bit ill-informed.[/QUOTE]
Cameron hasn't told him off for making that comment either. Either way you look at it, [I]people could die[/I] is a government sanctioned response to the strike crisis. That isn't 'a bit ill-informed', it's a very serious twist of the facts.
And yes I can blame him for it. He didn't have to make any comment about 'filling up just incase'. He's already stated quite clearly that there are plans in effect and people shouldn't worry. His backtracking and Maude's statement are clearly designed to force panic in order to make the strikers look like bad guys. I doubt this is some kind of Cameron plan, but he's used his words very poorly - which is not something the countries diplomat should repeat all too often.
[QUOTE=MrEndangered;35334230]Cameron hasn't told him off for making that comment either. Either way you look at it, [I]people could die[/I] is a government sanctioned response to the strike crisis. That isn't 'a bit ill-informed', it's a very serious twist of the facts.[/Quote]
First, where do they say that "people could die"?
Second, a comment by one man doesn't represent the view of the government - especially when he has retracted it.
Third, how do you know that David Cameron hasn't told him off for it?
[QUOTE=MrEndangered;35334230]And yes I can blame him for it. He didn't have to make any comment about 'filling up just incase'. He's already stated quite clearly that there are plans in effect and people shouldn't worry. His backtracking and Maude's statement are clearly designed to force panic in order to make the strikers look like bad guys. I doubt this is some kind of Cameron plan, but he's used his words very poorly - which is not something the countries diplomat should repeat all too often.[/QUOTE]
How does providing some advice ammount to backtracking? Plans are in place - but that doesn't mean precautionary advice can't also be given. What you are saying is akin to someone saying that the country has no gritting plans in place during an icy winter just because the government advised to wear sensible footwear when going outside. Providing advice is common sense - it does not mean that any plans that are in place are suddenly void.
And there is nothing wrong with how he worded it:
"If there is an opportunity to top up your tank if a strike is potentially on the way, then it is a sensible thing if you are able to do that."
"If there is an opportunity" =/= "Right this instant"
"Then it is sensible" =/= "It is mandatory"
[QUOTE=Emz;35333588]I wish people wouldn't panic buy when they don't need it. I commute 80 miles a day and genuinely need fuel for my car. :([/QUOTE]
Getting to work doesn't strike me as a genuine need
Tesco petrol station 2 minutes round corner from me has been loaded with panic buying twats for the past 36 hours, queues currently about an hour long blocking up a majority of the road in one direction.
I walk to work. I have no trouble with this. If I could drive a HGV I'd totally be a scab though.
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