EU lorry drivers will not come back to help the UK “out of the s*** they created themselves”, a trade union leader has warned.

Edwin Atema from the Dutch FNV union issued the stark message to UK Government leaders as they formulate plans to offer emergency visas to foreign workers in a desperate bid to solve a critical shortage of hauliers.

The UK is currently running low on food and gas, with petrol also in short supply.

Boris Johnson is thought to be considering sending in troops to drive oil tankers after filling stations in many areas ran dry over the weekend.

More than 10,000 overseas workers will be temporarily permitted to work as lorry drivers and in the food sector as ministers look to rescue Christmas from supply shortages.

READ MORE: Tory visa plan 'offensive' to foreign lorry drivers who were 'chased' from UK

Up to 5000 HGV drivers and 5500 poultry workers will be offered employment in the UK until Christmas Eve, in a bid to keep supermarket shelves stocked with turkeys and toys and counter delivery difficulties at petrol stations.

UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the changes, with the visas available from next month, would "ensure preparations remain on track" for the festive season.

But Atema, speaking to BBC Radio 4, said the offer will not entice lorry drivers back to Britain. He pointed to long-term issues with working conditions, as well as Brexit.

Asked if Downing Street’s short-term offer could be attractive to European drivers, he replied: “I think in the short term that will be a dead end.

“I think some kind of Marshall Plan will be needed to take the whole industry back to the surface.

“For example, in the UK, there is not even a collective agreement for the whole road transport industry so it's still up to individual employers to compete on working conditions, and that's never a good sign to drag an industry back to the surface.”

Atema added: “So, more is needed. And I think the EU workers we speak to will not go to the UK for a short-term visa to help the UK out of the shit they created themselves.”

READ MORE: Kirsty Strickland: UK's visa plea to HGV drivers is sending a shameful message

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister was warned that drafting in the army will not solve the crisis either.

A statement by Shell, ExxonMobile and other industry bodies again insisted there was no "national shortage of fuel" and that the pressures on supply were the result of "temporary spikes in customer demand".

But with no immediate sign of the problem easing, Johnson is reported to be holding a series of meetings to consider whether to activate the military for Operation Escalin.

The Environment Secretary insisted this morning that ministers have "no plans at the moment" to use the army to drive petrol tankers.

In a pooled clip for broadcasters, George Eustice said: "We are bringing Ministry of Defence trainers in to accelerate some of the HGV training to clear a backlog of people who want to carry out those tests, and there's definitely a role there for the MoD.

"In terms of other things we've no plans at the moment to bring in the army to actually do the driving, but we always have a Civil Contingencies section within the army on standby – but we're not jumping to that necessarily at the moment."

The Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) chairman Brian Madderson confirmed some training had been taking place "in the background" for military personnel. But he warned it was not an "absolute panacea" and that there was no "single lever" the Government and the industry could pull to resolve the crisis.

Madderson said it was not just a question of moving supplies to the filling stations as drivers had to load up their tanks at the gantry at the terminal, which was a skilled job.

"There has been training going on in the background for military personnel," he Radio 4. "But that's perhaps just confined to moving the tanker by articulated truck from point A to point B.

"One of the difficulties is loading, and the tanker drivers currently load their own tanks at the gantry at the terminals, and then most are providing the delivery to the forecourt.

"This is a skilled job and we will be working with Government and industry to see how we can best move it forward."

The PRA chairman hopes the oil companies would be able to find extra personnel to help with the gantry loading. He added, however: "It's not an absolute panacea.

"There is no one single lever that is going to be pulled by Government and industry together which is going to sort this situation. It's a matter of small levers, each contributing a little going forward."

The panic buying spree was sparked last week after concerns from BP were leaked that the shortage of lorry drivers could impact upon its ability to keep up with fuel deliveries.

The surge in demand led the PRA to warn that as many as two thirds of its membership of nearly 5500 independent outlets were out of fuel on Sunday, with the rest of them "partly dry and running out soon".