HAS the world gone stark raving bonkers?

Blackburn council decide to ban the backstroke in a swimming pool in case somebody bumps his or her head.

A council down south bans playground football in case the ball hits someone; another council banned hanging baskets in case one fell on somebody's head.

In Dorset an annual litter pick-up by villagers had to be abandoned because the local council was worried someone might cut themselves on a broken bottle.

Watch out! These yielding measures are down to those municipal workers, namely 'Council clipboard man.'

Council Clipboard Man is well and truly on the march, interfering in every aspect of our lives. If it carries on at this rate, some people will expect the council to do everything for them.

And invariably they'll be very disappointed because councils and governments are actually rather poor at getting things done.

Clipboard Man crushes independence, creativity and self-reliance and get up and go.

Clipboard Man should be stopped and soon, before we all become passive, timid, risk averse, enervated clients of the state, expecting everything to be done for us and incapable of anything other than a whimpering complaint.

It is time we set Council Clipboard Man packing and took back control of our own lives. Otherwise one day we'll look down and say: "My shoelace is undone what's the council going to do about it?"

JEAN ALLISON (Mrs). Ramsbottom.