© Reuters
In the UK, fears are growing that a so-called “pandemic” – where people are asked to go into quarantine – will cause food shortages. “We are very concerned about the situation,” Economic Affairs Minister Kwasi Kwarting admitted, who was asked about pictures of empty shelves in the supermarket. “We are monitoring the situation.”
GVSource: Belgian
In the UK, hundreds of thousands of people received a call to go into home quarantine via an official app within a week. They are seen as communicating with someone who has tested positive for coronavirus, and so they have been stressed, which means they have received a notification on their phone.
Companies have already complained of staff shortages due to Brexit, and now say that is the case epidemic threatens to deteriorate. According to Sky News, there are warnings that supply chains are “starting to fail” as truck drivers and individuals in the meat sector, among others, become stuck in their homes.
© AP
from epidemic It dominates the front pages of the British media on Thursday. “Pingdemic Disrupts food supply in supermarkets,” the Daily Telegraph headlines. The Sun and Daily Mail open with images of empty shelves. Fear of shortages as shops hit epidemicThe Times writes.
Food sector and government
Some companies are taking matters into their own hands. Bidfood has called on “stressed” employees to come to work if a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test shows they are not infected. Chief Executive Andrew Seely told the BBC his employees play a vital role in the food chain.
Government services cannot escape the consequences of the pandemic either. According to Sky News, the police have already indicated that several employees have stopped working in some control rooms. As a result, it is not always possible to quickly answer phone calls. Cleveland police say staff leave has been cancelled.
not required
Britons are not legally required to go into a home quarantine for ten days if they receive a notification via the app. They don’t even have to put it on their phones. It’s just urgent advice. However, many people have heeded the call and as a result the government is under pressure to take action. The government has already decided that from August 16, fully vaccinated people will not have to self-isolate if they appear in the picture during contact quest, unless they test positive themselves.
© EPA-EFE
