Eat Out to Help Out madness

[Redolent]

SiL has a phone chat with me yesterday. Told me that she and family (DH + 3 DC) had ‘really been helping out the economy’ over the last month. She sounded v tired and virtuous for her all efforts. Upon enquiring further, they’ve used the EOHO scheme pretty much twice a day, for lunch and dinner: eg 4x McDonald’s (“can feed us all for £9”) 4x KFC (“£15 and we can get a bargain bucket for lunch the next day”), Pizza Hut and some of the local takeaways.

This is utter madness. Her and her husband both have high blood pressure and are on medication, from a BAME background, high risk profession. They’ve been sold a lie that they’re helping out the economy when the economic and healthcare costs accruing from this junk food spree will be far higher.

When the UK’s covid strategy is properly evaluated in future, the lack of joined up thinking here will be rightly mocked. Obesity increasingly highlighted a risk factor for deaths, while junk food takeaways are subsidised in August.

Takeaways near me did EOTHO. They chucked one table and chair in the corner and no one sat in

Swings and roundabouts.

Shorter life expectancy = lower cost to the taxpayer for pensions and care homes.

We've all seen how neglected well looked after residents are in care homes...

Also, the sad truth is that people here have NO idea what the takeaway landscape in these highly deprived areas are. Walk out onto the main road and you’ll count 10-15 fried chicken, pizza, burger places.

So?! Does having 15 on one road force you to actually use any of them more often? Nope. Is anyone making people go out to eat at all? No. I mean... I wouldn't want to live on a street with 15 fast food outlets, but in no way would it make me go and eat more junk food than if I had 1 or 2 on my street. Why would it? Having 15 clothes shops wouldn't make me buy more clothes either!

It is a strange scheme. The only only time we've 'used' it was when it was FIL's birthday and we went out to a local restaurant. It was full of 90% retired people. The place was packed. No SD on tables, obviously no masks. These are the people most at risk. But some young people get fined 10k for putting on an outdoor rave. That's lower risk as outside and a younger demographic. That of course, doesn't help the economy.