Brexiteers need to suck it up, these shortages are all on you

I am partial to a McDonald’s strawberry milkshake, so was interested to read there are shortages in the supply chain (Metro, Wed). However, I rang my GP to book a blood test yesterday and was told they are only able to do urgent blood tests due to a shortage of the glass tubes they need to do them. This is far more worrying. The government needs to do something about the post-Brexit shortages in HGV drivers urgently. Waiting for the industry to train up new drivers is not a solution.

Jean, Surbiton

Nando’s out of chicken, McDonald’s out of milkshake and Britain out of common sense.

Fi, London

The news keeps suggesting that shortages on shelves are caused by Covid, a break in the supply chain, lockdowns etc. It is worth noting that there are no shortages in other European countries. This is a Brexit issue.

Tony Howarth, London

Carolyn (MetroTalk, Wed) says Brexiteers were ‘short-sighted’ not to realise leaving the EU would lead to staff shortages.

The short-sighted are actually Remainers who think it’s fine to import cheap foreign labour. We’ve had it too cheap for too long. This tiny island of ours has reached bursting point. We are simply full.

And I couldn’t agree with Ian (MetroTalk, Wed) more – how can we need cheap labour with about three million still on benefits picking and choosing what jobs they fancy?

Russ, Croydon

Carolyn thinks Leavers focused only on cutting immigration. My generation has seen our cost of living soar (housing particularly, due to inflated demand) while wages were suppressed by the oversupply of labour.

Just because the damage to the economy from being in the EU is only just becoming apparent to some and that it will take time to fix, doesn’t mean choosing to fix it was a mistake. I don’t believe paying staff a pittance is the only way for things to be affordable. If Australia can pay properly then so can we. Dan, London

We have a subset of our country who think some work is beneath them. How do we get them working without penalising the genuine?

Rather than treat migrants with disdain, maybe we should welcome them into those jobs our work-shy compatriots refuse. Perhaps that does feed the ‘British Empire mentality’ as Ian puts it, but it also welcomes people prepared to better themselves. I thank my lucky stars I was born where I was. I had no choice, just as these migrants had no choice over where they were born.

Helen, Nottingham

With truck driver shortages, now is the time to teach those at school that university isn’t the only option. Get our younger generation on career paths in transport to continue to have the food, clothing and transport at your door. Harry, Brighton