The Open Europe team has had all hands on deck this week stuffing envelopes with our new report on EU financial regulation which we're sending out to as many people as we can afford.
When the posties came to pick up the mail bags filled with the reports they shook their heads in that familiar plumber-style fashion: "Sorry pal, won't be able to take them."
OE: "Why not?"
"Too heavy... It's these bloody European directives. Can't carry anything over 11 kilo..."
They left telling us that they would return when we'd made the bags lighter and EU compliant. The irony of a report on EU over-regulation being slowed down by EU red tape was not lost on the team...
To be fair though, we're not experts in EU postal directives so we can't immediately check that this isn't just another "euromyth". We're going to look into it and will update you at a later date. If any readers can clear this matter up for us we'd we'd love to know, or if you've got any EU regulation stories that you want to share / get us to chase up stick them in the comments.
Oooh, the irony!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to your blog post on the euromyth question. If the response is rapid, I'll assume that the allegation was entirely well founded (and the regulation is in fact worse than you feared).
If the response is slow, I'll assume the posties decided to blame the most remote regulatory entity they could think of.
And here's a question. Just how much do you think it is acceptable to ask a postman to carry before he puts his back out and loses his livelihood?
(OK, so it's not the sort of comment you asked for. But hey, it's a better response than you get for most of your postings, nicht Wahr?)
ReplyDeleteEr - we were hoping some ultra-well -informed person out there should answer the question. Ho hum. We'll put it to the Commission rep in London.
ReplyDeleteSecond question: if such a regulation exists would it would be a good thing and what would the case be for doing it at European level rather than national? Any answers?