The Fats In The Fire - Really!

From Burning Our Money and the BBC comes the story that McDonalds (yes, the burger people) are able to offer all workers the chance to qualify in "multi-skilled hospitality". The fast food chain said government funding meant it could offer the scheme to one in eight of its staff this year and up to 10,000 every year from 2010. The McDonald's apprenticeship will be equivalent to five GCSEs at A* to C.

As Burning Our Money asks - how does training another 10,000 burger flippers contribute to "the country's competitiveness"? (And how does it help with the government's costly anti-obesity campaign?).

More to the point what is the cost to the public purse of getting people to lose weight and become fit and what is the cost of training 10,000 people to then reverse the process. Yes, I know its £1,000 per person grant from the government - but what about all the bureaucrats that will be needed to implement the scheme and run it?

And this is 'joined-up' thinking and 'joined-up' government.

As Victor Meldrew would have said..................................................