10 August 2007
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A pensioner has been told she must stop tending a public flower bed unless she agrees to wear a fluorescent jacket, put up warning signs and use a lookout.
June Turnbull, 79, of Urchfront near Devizes, has nurtured the blooms on the plot for eight years.
But now she is being told to obey health and safety rules after being spotted by a county council official.
Next thing you know all pedestrians will be required to wear a fluorescent jacket and carry a big flag. It gets worse. Not only do you need a bright jacjet and a lookout but you also need a license:"However, to ensure this type of work is done safely they need to seek permission from us to enable us to check there are no local safety issues, such as underground wires or pipes.
Urchfont Parish Council has recently applied for such a licence and has had a meeting with the county council to discuss questions about the safety conditions attached to it.
"We need to get a licence from the Highways Authority to enable work on this bed to be done, people must wear a fluorescent jacket, have warning signs and have two people working there," Peter Newell, chairman of Urchfont Parish Council, told BBC News.
Anyone recall that Monty Python sketch about Fish Licenses?