The prime minister has finally come out of hiding to address the fuel crisis, but it’s too little, too late

Editorial: The government has failed in its duty over fuel shortages

The prime minister, having failed adequately to prepare, simply hoped the problem would go away (AP)

After five days of the panic buying of petrol, causing shortages that could now threaten lives as NHS and care workers cannot do their jobs, the prime minister has finally deigned to appear on television.

When protesters against fuel duty rises blockaded supplies in 2000, causing a similar crisis, Tony Blair held daily briefings to update people on how the government was handling the situation. This time, Boris Johnson has been conspicuous in his absence, and even now has only delivered a few words to a shared camera to say that things are “stabilising” and that “the UK is prepared” to get through to Christmas and beyond. There were no details given, and no chances for other journalists to ask questions.

It may be that the prime minister did not want to escalate the response, fearing that if he addressed the nation, it would only make the panic buying worse. We have, unfortunately, gone beyond that point. The government should have taken early and decisive action to ration purchases, not least because it would have sent the message that ministers were in control.

Instead, the prime minister has been hiding away, sending out George Eustice and Grant Shapps to try to sound reassuring – although they mostly succeeded in sounding complacent to the point of arrogance. Mr Shapps, the transport secretary, at least managed to accept that Brexit “no doubt will have been a factor”, a reality that the government has hitherto sought to deny.

The government’s strategy has been to batten down the hatches and hope that the problem will solve itself. That is possible, but Mike Granatt, who headed the civil contingencies unit in 2000, said that the crisis under Blair took three weeks to resolve itself after the initial disruption. This time, the shortage of lorry drivers will persist for months. Mr Granatt told the BBC that the crisis demanded leadership: “Someone needs to stand up and say this to people rather than hide away.”

One government spokesperson even tried to use the convention that ministers refrain from making statements during the opposition party’s annual conference as an excuse for the silence. This convention failed to prevent Kwasi Kwarteng from announcing new wind turbine contracts in the northeast.

Until Tuesday, the government could at least rely on the Labour Party to join it in insulating itself from the problems on the nation’s forecourts. The opposition seemed to be using the guaranteed media coverage of its Brighton conference to talk to itself about internal matters and to divide itself over symbolic policies. But now Labour, too, has woken up to the seriousness of the problem, with Sir Keir Starmer saying that key workers should be prioritised and making modest proposals to ease the lorry driver shortage.

But it is the government that has really failed in its duty, because it holds executive power. Mr Johnson has followed the pattern that had become too familiar throughout his management of the pandemic, lagging behind events, and slow to act even when he is finally persuaded that it is necessary.

It is no surprise to discover, as we report today, that ministers had been warned repeatedly about serious flaws in the UK’s fuel supply chains for years. Mr Johnson, having failed adequately to prepare, simply hoped the problem would go away, and only once it had become unavoidable, reluctantly spoke up.

As is so often the case, he has little of substance to say, except blithe optimism that everything will be all right by Christmas. Well, we remember what happened last Christmas. We are not reassured.