The fuel dispute has reached crisis point for many sectors of the industry, with stocks remaining manageable for only the next couple of days.


Paper mills, printers and industry bodies have all been monitoring events.


Pensord Press chief executive Tony Jones said: We are talking to all our suppliers and they have currently got about two to three days of fuel supply left. As a precaution we have started to stockpile essential materials.


Chris Smith, Southernprint managing director, was counting down by the hour: A crisis management team reviews twice daily. The biggest problem is the ability of hauliers to take from us to publishers.


Staff are sharing cars and turning off their air conditioning, said Cradley Print sales director Phil Webster. We will continue to produce if paper gets through.


The Periodical Publishers Association (PPA) has written to the Prime Minister, saying: Paper supplies are threatened and a number of printers are already signalling difficulties with some grades.


With the likelihood that some mills will start to feel the full effects if shortages continue into next week, Inveresk finance director Gerard Cassels said: At present we have slight issues with haulier deliveries, which will start to be a problem if they cannot get diesel.


Cassels painted a bleaker outlook for the forthcoming week: We are being told that open cast mining is being restricted, due to the diesel fuel supply. That would start to affect us as two of our plants burn coal.


BPIF corporate affairs director Mike Hopkins said: As you might expect, our regional offices are starting to get calls from members, mainly with two questions: What do I do if I havent got any work, as I cant get any supplies?; and what do I do if people cant get to work? We have had a report of a major printing company in the North shutting a line down and laying people off because they cannot get any paper.


Story by Andy Scott and Jez Abbott