Dark side of the Welfare State

This one is good:
Our lead local story tomorrow is about an aborted spring camp for 30 sixth graders.


Anyway, at Blekeskolan in Ystad the kids were looking forward to the traditional spring camp. Swedes love to (or at least pretend to) go outside and enjoy the forrests and the fields and sixthgraders always spend a couple of days out somewhere at one of many cabin resorts in springtime.

The crux this time is the new EU regulations, prohibiting the accompanying teachers from participating, as they would practically be on 24 hour call. No-one can work more than 11 out of every 24 hours. The regulation was passed last year in Brussels under much fuss, understandably.

Thus the headmaster cancelled the trip due to the new EU directive. Of course some parents volunteered to come along, so the teachers could just go home for the night and their righteous sleep.

But to no avail. "According to governement legal expertise, responsibility for the children at night time can not be transferred to the parents", writes the headmaster in a memo to the parties involved.

I wrote in an earlier blog here below about the benefits of having extended welfare services for tending kids.

But it is seems parts of our governing structure would like to see parents made totally obsolete. And it is still unclear if the headmaster in questions expects the parents to turn over their kids in his charge for safe keeping even when field trips are not on the curriculum.

And for those versed in the language of heroes and great deeds (svenska, alltså), this story will be the theme of our editorial tomorrow: Take a peek here!