The Scottish government has revealed that 97% of Scotland’s petrol stations still have fuel.
Finance Secretary John Swinney said the widespread availability of fuel, combined with the fact there would be no strikes for at least two weeks, meant motorists should not panic buy.
The Scottish Government’s Resilience Committee insists that “fuel production was easily able to meet with the slight increase in demand following a 24 hour spike yesterday”.
They said that compared with increased fuel demand in England of up to 170 per cent, estimates of increased demand in Scotland are around 10 per cent.
Whilst some petrol stations ran out of fuel this was not significantly different from normal business.
The government said in a statement: “At 1700 today, 97 per cent of Scotland’s 907 filling stations have fuel.”
Mr Swinney said: “The clear information emerging from today’s resilience meeting is that there is more than enough fuel in the system to meet normal levels of demand.
“There is still every reason to believe that industrial action can be averted as Unite and hauliers sit down to talks with ACAS next week.
“News from Unite that there will be no strike, at least until after the Easter break, is welcome. And it is clear too that strike action is not inevitable.
“The Scottish Government urges both sides to resolve the issues between them and avoid any further disruption.
“Motorists expressed their frustration at the utterly needless level of disruption seen across forecourts yesterday. It is a frustration I share. The blame lies squarely with poor and confusing advice coming out of Whitehall over the last 48 hours.
“The vast majority of Scottish drivers ignored the poor advice, purchasing petrol only as necessary and they should be congratulated for this.
“It is the job of government to plan for contingencies and to respond proportionately to circumstances on the ground. That is what the Scottish Government will continue to do.
“While individuals and businesses have been let down by UK Ministers we will continue to listen to calmer voices in the industry.
“They are clear, as are we, that the industry is operating as normal and their advice is that drivers should carry on normal fuel purchasing arrangements.”
