Jamie got 271.677 signatures - anyone else think thats pants???!!

[swiperfox]

There are 60 million people in the uk! I think it's pretty sad that he only got 271,677 signatures. BUT I think he's an absolute superstar for doing what he has and this morning he has gone to Downing Street to be told that school dinners will receive an extra £280million boost, and children will receive 50p per meal. (still doesnt seem much!!)

Good on you Jamie!!!

[tiredemma]

i was about to post about him actually, im surprised he only got that many signatures.

i think he should be next onb the honours list.seriously.

[Sorrel]

I hope what jamie has done is having a direct influence on the gov policies. Can't help thinking Ruth kelly has her own self important agenda tho'

[throckenholt]

but how many parents have web access ? I have no idea of the proporttions - but maybe a lot don't have it yet.

[vict17]

also many people will have signed the petition on the back of the TV programme and the whole country won't have watched it!!

[munz]

is it on the internet? can some one do a link? i'd sign it without a doubt.

[ssd]

I think he is a total star who deserves a medal.

[MistressMary]

Tis closed now!
I managed to sign it though.
Perhaps we should contact them to reopen it?

[throckenholt]

www.feedmebetter.com/

I thought it was only on the internet - but maybe there are other ways to sign it as well.

[gingerbear]

on 5 live this morning the reporter was v norty. Said that from the back you couldn't tell the difference between Jamie Oliver and Ruth Kelly.

[Freckle]

That's actually pretty good when you consider the normally apathetic attitude of this country generally. Not everyone will have seen his programme or seen coverage in the news. Millions of people in this country have no interest in schools or children (rightly or wrongly) and I suspect the parents of children who have packed lunches were probably sitting rather smugly on their hands.

[swiperfox]

I agree that not everyone would have seen the programme but it has been on the news and in the papers and everyone I know is talking about it - surely at least a million out of 60million have net access!!

But hey - at least he's got it noticed and they are doing something about it

[pinotgrigio]

Did anybody see Ruth Kelly on Sky News this morning? She was talking about how the government will be offering a complete overhaul of school dinners/extra funding/training for dinner ladies/grants for kitchens - ie everything that Jamie asked for - as if it was all her own idea. She looked really smug and 'clever me'. I wanted to slap her.

[sunnyskies]

This is very probably a stupid question but my DD school charges £1.75 a day and they are having 50p for the ingredients what is the rest of the money used for?

[Sorrel]

I agree PinotG, i reckon she has just jumped on jamie's bandwagon.

[Tinker]

But so what if she's jumped on the band wagon. Most people would realise this anyway but if it means more money then does it matter?

[Tinker]

sunnyskies - wages, heating etc.

[Sorrel]

Tinker, I suppose thats true, and it doesn't matter if things really change for the better. i just did'nt like the cut of her jib this morning.
Not enough sleep last night.

[sinclair]

Have to say I cried when I heard lead item on the news this morning was the extra funding to enable 50p/60p (I think) to be spent on primary/secondary meals. This is a direct result of Jamie O's campaign, and we all know that whatever Ruth Kelly wants to pretend. Like him or loathe him he has pulled off a remarkable feat and made the government sit up and listen. Give him a free sub to mumsnet I say!

[vict17]

sunnyskies - staff, cleaning materials

[pinotgrigio]

Ruth Kelly annoyed me particularly because I feel they are electioneering. Would the government have really done this if it wasn't an election year? There are 59.5 million people who didn't sign the petition who might not have heard about Jamie Olivers campaign who might think that the government did this off their own back. That annoys me as I think JO put in a huge personal effort into something that isn't for his own personal gain (unlike Ruth Kelly, who seems to be basking in the glory of it all).

Yes, the important thing is that the outcome is more money, of course it is. But RK was still annoyingly smug. She's been in the job 3 months and really expects me to believe this has been her priority? She managed to get all this done in just 12 weeks? I don't think so. I hate being treated like an idiot by politicians. I really do.

[Gobbledigook]

I cannot bear the woman...or man...I'm not sure

It's all JO's work but yes, as long it changes that's the main thing. Would rather he got all the credit though.

RK made me cringe on the lunchtime news saying how the gov. had been planning since last Autumn - yeah, and I just fell off the top of a Christmas Tree

[Gobbledigook]

And yes, the number of signatures is pants really - I best most of them came from Mumsnet

[MistressMary]

You can't be a fairy Gobbldigook?

It makes me sick when they steal the glory from J Olivers work though.

[Twiglett]

I would just like to say that I was in the 300's