The media is full of criticism: dithering, children at risk …. Because the farm at the centre of the e coli outbreak was not closed immediately the first case was reported to the Health Protection Authority. Both The Times front page and BBC News have been leading with this censure.
That would have been on August 26th, just before the Bank Holiday weekend.
And if they had?
Well then, it would have been Health & Safety gone mad wouldn’t it. Family holiday disrupted, children deprived of the valuable experience of learning where their food comes from, threat to rural businesses etc etc all because of just one case
"Farm visits for recreational and educational purposes are popular in the UK. About 250 open farms receive up to nine million visitors each year and several farms have more than 100 000 visitors annually. The risk to visitors of contracting zoonotic infections is cognised."
"The public need to be educated about the risks and about their responsibilities, which include the need to wash hands thoroughly and to avoid hand to mouth contact when visiting farms."
Perhaps the authorities were negligent or careless in this case. But I wish we could be in a place where, until we have more than just hindsight, we start from the assumption that professionals always do their best. Unless we do that, they will naturally choose always the precautionary wet blanket
Link
Related post
