A few months ago I wrote a blog about Europe, and the UK in particular, becoming an overbearing, interfering Nanny State. Since then I’ve been keeping a lookout for articles and features that have caught my eye so that I can further illustrate the ridiculous state of things in this part of the world. My top 5 in descending order:
#5. Overweight parents will be paid to walk their children to school under plans to tackle the obesity problem and those who attend keep-fit classes, weight-loss clubs or even go for a jog round the block will be eligible for rewards, collecting points on loyalty cards which will be redeemed against healthy food, sports equipment or gym sessions.
#4. A city council has banned home baking stalls from school fun days because they are a health threat. The cake stall has been a mainstay of school fundraising for decades but has now been discontinued because of concerns about hygiene and allergies. (Maybe it will also help tackle the obesity problem!).
#3. A Lollipop man has been banned from giving high-fives to children as he helps them cross the road. The popular 70-year old crossing guard has been doing the job for ten years, but after one parent complained, he was told that he must stop the practice because giving high-fives to the youngsters was a “health and safety risk”, although there was no explanation of why it was dangerous
#2. A Birmingham mother was fined £75 for feeding the ducks at her local park, but her 17 month old son was allowed to carry on because he was too young to prosecute. The woman was approached by a council warden as she and her toddler threw bread to the ducks and was told to stop feeding the birds because children might slip on duck mess. When she queried the fine she was told it was for “littering”
#1 The BBC changed the lyrics on classics such as Humpty Dumpty and Little Miss Muffet to remove the negatives. In their version of Humpty Dumpty, the King’s horses made Humpty happy again (instead of being unable to put Humpty together again) and in Little Miss Muffet, Miss Muffet makes friends with the spider rather than being frightened away. The Beeb said that they had changed the words for “creative purposes.”
Yeah, right.