A Standing Joke In The UK In The Autumn Is 'The Train Is Late, Leaves On The Line!'

well it now appears that it is a falling down one, it appears that the police in the West Midlands have been falling down on leaves in ever increasing numbers, so many in fact that a seasonal poster campaign has been launched, it warns officers of the perils that plague their job and puts their lives in mortal danger,

bobbies on the beat are being warned to beware 'slippery leaves' in autumn, snow in winter, 'sudden downpours' in spring and even the sun in summer,

the industry magazine Police Review states: 'It is intended that a series of four seasonal campaigns will be introduced throughout the forthcoming months, 'As the winter approaches, a campaign dedicated to slips, trips and falls and adverse weather conditions will be introduced in November based on safety awareness posters, the other seasons introduce their own seasonal risk, for example heat stress in the summer and impaired visibility through sunshine; in autumn, slippery surfaces due to leaves, sun at low point in sky affecting visibility; and in spring, sudden downpours.'

Andy Gilbert, chairman of West Midlands Police Federation, told Police Review: 'While we welcome anything that enhances officer safety, there is a clear danger here of being patronising and stating the bleeding obvious.' a spokesman for the TaxPayers' Alliance called the initiative 'absurd',

yesterday a spokesman for West Midlands Police said the force would now consider emailing officers with the advice rather than embarrassing itself by printing more poster, West Midlands police force must have money to burn, better e-mail them to wear goggles, in case the smoke gets in their eyes!