Everybody needs a Nanny…

Few phrases incite as much red-faced anger among right wing (or frequently left wing) circles as the term "Nanny State".

However, it is apt to ask the question: when did 'Nanny' become such an interfering hate figure? What happened to the kind, caring Nanny…the one who took you to the shop to buy sweets and exclaimed with un-failing surprise "my, haven’t you grown!" In short, the 'Nanny state' doesn't pointlessly interfere, it acts to care for you and look after you.

Take one example - compulsory cooking lessons in schools. Throughout interviews, Ed Balls was persistently asked 'Isn't it the parents' job to teach children how to cook' or 'why does the State need to get involved'.

The reality is, however, that many parents either don't have time (or some the inclination) to fill this role. The Government’s additional funding of £2.5 million per year to cover the costs of ingredients for those children who receive free school meals, emphasis on practical skill, simple dishes and fresh ingredients can therefore fill this gap.

With one-third of children either overweight or obese; obese individuals dying on average 9 years earlier than non-obese people; and the cost of excess weight to the NHS being £4.2 billion annually, it is a gap that needs filling.

Take another example – speed cameras. Push beyond Jeremy Clarkson's naïve invective against speed cameras in defence of 'driver's rights' (which presumably in his hierarchy supersede those of cyclists and pedestrians) and you find that speed cameras make our roads safer.

A four-year report by University College London, which examined over 4,000 camera sites found 70% speed reductions, a total of 4,230 fewer collisions where minor injury occurred, and 100 fewer people killed. Once again, the 'Nanny State' steps in to protect, not pointlessly interfere.

That is they key – the word 'pointless'. Nobody could legitimately claim that Governments do not interfere more than they once did, but they do not do so for their own good or without reason. Like 'Nanny' forcing you to take slightly distasteful cough medicine – it may at times feel unpleasant but it does improve your general wellbeing.


Adam Leeder is the parliamentary researcher to Chris Mole MP