A reader has got in touch to tell us about the LUNACY surrounding the ‘Healthy Start’ programme, which is meant to ensure that less well-off mums can buy fruit, veg and milk.

To qualify you have to prove you’re not rich, that you claim certain benefits, and that you are either pregnant or have a young child. To do the last bit you need to get a signed note from your GP or health visitor.

Except thanks to CREEPING PRIVATISATION in the NHS, local surgeries can now charge you for this ‘service’, as our informant found out to her dismay.

The cost of a doctor’s note to claim £3.10 weekly vouchers? A whopping £30-£40.

“Outrageous!” is the polite way she put it…