More than 40 countries, including France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Canada, Poland, Spain, Sweden and Russia, have temporarily closed their borders to the UK after Boris Johnson spoke about a new, more contagious, strain of the virus on Saturday.

The European Commission has since advised all member states, bar Greece and Cyprus, who have not enacted travel bans, to reopen their borders to the UK after lorries were left lining the motorways in Dover this week.

EU nations do not have to follow the advice, with Germany already banning travel from the UK until January, and Ireland extending its restrictions until December 31.

Today one Turkish long-haul truck driver was photographed setting up a meal at a Kent stop off point along the M20. His pop-up table contained sausages, honey, garlic, flatbread and cheese.

Another cooked food from the back of his vehicle, while a group of Romanian drivers could also be seen dishing out vodka as they gathered around a small white Christmas tree, decorated with coke cans.

Drivers fear they will be stuck in the UK over Christmas

The borders closed amid fears of a new strain of Covid

It is thought around 1,500 lorries are currently queued in and around Dover waiting to cross the Channel.

One lorry driver told the BBC’s Today Programme: ‘I feel bad, really bad, terrible in fact. We known nothing, we don’t know if we can get home to see our families for Christmas.’

Discussing plans for drivers to be tested before they go back to the mainland, he added: ‘It will be good, but maybe in Dover there are 1,000 to 1,500 lorries. If they implement testing here then maybe it will be a good idea, but they need to start now to get to Christmas Eve.

‘There is no words to describe this. I came on Sunday and on Sunday they decided to close it. If I knew that one day before, I would never have come here.’

Some drivers put out a small white Christmas tree decorated with drinks cans

A Portuguese driver was seen cleaning the cab of his freight lorry

Trucker Elvis Abdulcair, 43, told the Mail Online he had a lorry full of Christmas gifts to be delivered from England to Romania. He said he felt like ‘Santa Claus with no reindeers’ due to the travel ban.

He went on: ‘It is very bad because all these people will not have their cards and presents from their family in time for Christmas. The French government is s***. They have ruined it for everyone. And for what?

‘I have been here two days now and don’t know how much longer it will go on for. I just want to go home.’