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On October 12, British official data showed that the vacancy situation in the UK has risen to a record high of 1.2 million. The British Employment Research Institute estimates that compared with the data before the epidemic, the number of people in the current labor market in the UK is still short of 900,000 workers. The shortage of labor has opened the prelude to the cold winter of the British supply chain.

After Brexit, the domestic timber supply chain has been in short supply for a long time. Due to the carbon neutral policy issued by the European Union, the government has begun to vigorously support the construction industry, among which wooden construction has become a hot project at the moment. As the most environmentally friendly material that can replace reinforced concrete, wood construction is hard to find in the UK.

The impact of Brexit is not small, but Europe is, after all, the world's most important place for timber production, and the availability of raw materials is not a problem. However, logistics and transportation have become the main reason. Due to the impact of Brexit, the shortage of truck drivers prevented timber from being supplied on time, and the shortage of timber in the UK once again caused prices to rise.

Although the transportation obstacles caused by the epidemic can be attributed to natural disasters, the subsequent Brexit and tax changes were completely man-made disasters. Many British media accused the British government of rushing to leave the European Union without making a backup plan, which eventually led to the current situation. This dilemma of shortage of goods.

How collapsed is the current supply chain in the UK? BBC News opened the headline with "Shortages are the only thing we don't seem to be running out of in the UK right now." With limited resources, while facing a declining labor force, the vicious circle has plunged the UK into a supply chain winter.

Now in the UK, if you can afford to buy a car, but you will not be able to drive him on the road because there is no gasoline. If you drive him to a store, you will find that you can hardly buy all the groceries you need in the store.

The coming Christmas will let the British people experience a holiday with no gifts, no turkey, and no Christmas tree.

Transportation, lack!

The first problem that broke out in the UK after Brexit was the shortage of large truck drivers. Due to complex visa issues, the industry instantly lacks available drivers. The transportation industry is an extremely important part of the supply chain, which is directly related to the follow-up. The outbreak of timber shortage has buried hidden dangers.

In the latest news, the British government has put the army on standby to alleviate the follow-up problems caused by the shortage of heavy cargo drivers. However, it is conservatively estimated that there are still about 100,000 qualified drivers that have become a gap in the industry. Even the increase in the cost of wholesale fuel has pushed the existing price to the highest point in the UK in eight years and has complicated the transportation situation.

Wood for construction, lacking!

After a series of problems such as transportation problems, supply chain problems, changes to the Brexit import rules and labor visas, the supply of construction materials in the UK has been in short supply. The price of wood has soared especially. The expansion of houses that used to cost £20,000 now costs about 26,000. GBP.

In the first seven months of 2021, the amount of timber and lumber imported by the United Kingdom increased by nearly 2 million cubic meters compared to the first seven months of 2020. Softwood increased by 43.6% over the same period, and hardwood increased by 26%.

Although timber imports have increased and the construction industry is slowly recovering, it is still unable to withstand the shortage of timber due to transportation problems. Large-scale construction delays and rising timber prices have put pressure on British construction companies.