The full dress rehearsal

Last year, Michael Gove arranged a 42 vehicle "traffic jam" from Manston to Dover to show how robust the Government's mitigations were.

It looked a joke then, now it looks even more hilarious, just not funny.

It is hard to underestimate the anger felt by drivers waiting to get to Dover port, that the blame the French authorities is one thing, but the drivers will not forget the chaos and the lack of support from the UK authorities in providing toilets, water and food as they waited. Any suggestion of delays come January 1st, if I was them, I would not want to return to Brexit/COVID Island.

We, as a country, were ten days away from economic Brexit, the end of the transition, and we should have been ready for such chaos, had a strategic reserve of portable toilets and bottles of water. And yet none were to be seen. Instead it was left to charities to feed the drivers with thei first hot meal in days, while Johnson, Gove et al were missing in action.

News came late on the 22nd that the border would reopen, that was reported yesterday, and since then news of the chaos in Dover has dropped off the news, most assuming it is all over. A quick look at the traffic map this morning shows the A20 along Townwall Street closed still, and Dover town centre jammed too.

The M20 from Maidtone to the end at Folkestone is closed coastbound, and from Ashford to Maidstone London bound. Like COVID, chaos never sleeps.

25 French fireman have been sent over this morning with 10,000 COVID test kits to help in clearing the backlog, just the kind of international cooperation and kindness that Brexit has helped turn into hate.

Today is Christmas Day, and ferries usually stop early evening to give crews Christmas Day off with their families and essential maintenance be carried out on vessels that work pretty much non stop the other 364 days of the year. I assume that ferries will work non stop to clear the jams and delays through Christmas, more heroes going above what their employer and the public expects. More Christmases ruined so that drivers stand a chance of getting home on the 25th.

Make no mistake, even with a deal, this is a taster for January. And although shops have fresh fruit and vegetables now, next week will be different, and beynd, well.

Enjoy Christmas to all those who read these who live in the UK. I wish I could say I think the New Year will be better, maybe by next Christmas it will, but January and February will be brutal, will test us all.

I have no good news.