Panic at the pumps

In his blog at the Other Place, Fraser Nelson recounts a delightful weekend in Scotland where he saw no evidence of petrol shortages. Sadly I had no such luck. The weekend I just spent in Scotland was also delightful but evidence of petrol shortages were everywhere up in the North East. Diesel is a particular problem, with one forecourt in Aberdeen having the audacity to charge £1.23 for the ever diminishing black gold.

On Saturday morning my Dad went to the local petrol station having discovered there would be a delivery at 7am. He arrived just as the big hand reached twelve and the pumps were newly replenished – he was about 20th in the queue. Stories abound of people driving from local town to local town to get petrol, only to find the pumps empty and ironically using all their remaining fuel in the process.

The overwhelming feeling I got from people was one of disbelief. How could this happen? One compared the fuel shortages to Zimbabwe, another welcomed me “to the Third World”. There is also a feeling of utter frustration that even in these civilised times a trade union intent on flexing its muscles can still bring a country to its knees. The fact it is over an issue which technically doesn’t affect a single person who is striking (the final salary pension scheme is changing for future workers not for current ones at Grangemouth) just makes it even more galling.

The Unite union has taken out adverts calling for ‘public support and understanding’ but I’d be interested to hear from a single person willing to grant it. I just pray Alex Salmond doesn’t take the opportunity to strip to the waist, paint himself blue and shout: “They can take out petrol, but they’ll never take our freeeeedommmm!”