Sir Keir Starmer has admitted that summer holidays abroad are at risk due to UK jet fuel levels. In an interview, the Labour Party leader and Prime Minister warned that the Middle East war and Iran conflict could affect people's holidays.
PM's Warning on Holiday Disruption
“We’ll see how long the conflict goes on,” the PM said. “I can see that, if there’s more impact, people might change their habits… where they go on holiday this year, what they’re buying in the supermarket, that sort of thing.”
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said the Government was engaging in “contingency planning” on flights as fears circle around the prospect of summer holidays being cancelled across June, July and August of this year.
Government Contingency Planning
He said: “We are ramping up planning for all different potential impacts on the UK economy and consumers, and that means focusing on live monitoring of stock levels and what plans are in place for addressing supply chain disruption.”
He went on: “On holidays… I just want to reiterate that UK airlines are clear that they are not currently seeing a shortage of jet fuel. It’s typically bought in advance with airports and their suppliers keeping stocks of bunkered fuel to support their resilience. And we continue to work with fuel suppliers, airlines and international counterparts on our contingency planning to ensure people keep moving and businesses are supported while the conflict is ongoing.”
The Prime Minister’s spokesman added: “We have no plans to implement this. Our focus remains on cutting bills and backing renters alongside lower energy prices.”
Impact of Iran's Strait of Hormuz Closure
Iran’s decision to close the Strait of Hormuz, which is usually used to transport about a fifth of global oil and gas, has caused a shortage in jet fuel. Iran closed the Strait back in February when the conflict erupted between the Middle East and Gulf country and the USA.
The Government is preparing a package of measures aimed at supporting the airlines to weather any shortages in the coming weeks and months, according to reports. The I news, for instance, reported this week the Cabinet is likely to relax standards on what fuel is allowed to be used in planes. This could be a way of expanding the supplies which can be tapped, according to the news website.
