England's Absurd - and Intrusive - Nanny State

A story from the U.K.'s Daily Mail shocked me for two reasons. First, a supermarket has announced that it won't offer valuable savings on infant formula because it violates European law. Apparently, there are lots of bored bureaucrats in Brussels who apparently have nothing better to do than concoct such inane policies. That was bad enough, but the story also reveals that the government sends bureaucrats to the homes of new mothers to badger them back in the workforce (presumably to pay taxes to support needless bureaucrats). Can anyone from England tell me if this is a mandatory program? Do families have to accept visits from these baby-ogling bureaucrats?

New mothers are being denied valuable money saving offers on infant milk formula because of 'politically correct' pressure to breast feed. Boots says it cannot award loyalty points on milk for newborns because it is against EU law to 'promote' bottle feeding. ...Under European legislation, Boots and other stores with loyalty schemes can be penalised by trading standards officers for 'incentives' to buy formula milk for babies up to six months. ...Health visitors sent to help new mothers have been told to ask them when they will go back to work. They have been instructed to find out about job plans as part of routine checks on the health of the baby. The pressure on mothers to think about an early return to work has come as part of a Government drive to widen the role of health visitors. But their union last night called the edict 'unethical', while mothers said the intrusive questioning made them feel guilty for wanting to stay at home to look after their families.