French cause more grief
Page 7
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• More than 1,200 British trucks were forced to use the M20 in Kent as a giant truckstop last week after French fishermen hrought cross-Channel sailings to Calais to a standstill.
Trucks sat nose to tail for four miles as police used the motorway to hold traffic back from the congested Port of Dover. Despite a legal challenge by the ferry companies, it was two days before the fishermen allowed services to resume.
Feelings among drivers ran high as they contemplated yet more delays. But amid increasing anger French trucks in the queues were left largely alone. David Holmes, of I lolmes of Heathrow, reckons the delays cost his firm at least £7,000. "We specialise in carrying goods between airports," he says. "As a result of the blockade all our work for next week has been sent by air—the only good thing is the trucks weren't using any fuel."
While the trucks sat on the M20, Freight Transport Association president David Green handed a giant invoice for 12100m into the French Embassy in London to highlight the delays in paying compensation following last November's strike.