As if that image is not disturbing enough, the sheer volume of people struggling to maintain a healthy weight/life balance does not bode well for the future of the British economy.
As I am now forty, and will (hopefully) retire in twenty-five years' time (yeah, right!), it would be comforting to think that there will be a workforce fit enough to pay taxes to whichever government is in power at the time enough to a) squander on themselves and their expenses and b) retaining a little to pay me a state pension.
Well, one can live in hope.
So, thought I, shouldn't we ensure a healthier Britain in the future - for everyone!?
Surely, the fitter everyone is (in body & mind) the more productive we will be as a nation.
A little like a census of biblical times (but with only a nod to the tax-inspector), let's do something pro-active.
It could work like this:-
- every fifteen months, every household in the UK checks in to Hotel Health-Check UK for three days (one day to arrive, one for tests and assessments, one to return home)
- every household gets a full eighteen months notice of their initial check-in in order to ensure feasibility of date of attendance
- employers are encouraged/subsidised to allow individuals this period as additional leave of absence from their current jobs
- if a household is on benefits, their participation is expected/recognised/rewarded?
- 'every fifteen months' so that families/households are assessed at different times of the year
- The benefits of this are immense, to the whole of the population:-
- every member of every household gets their own unique health-check number and status
- this will give a real-time view of the UK population and its demographics
- without your health-check number, and confirmation of successful attendance, any benefits could be jeopardised/suspended, subject to investigation
- this could potentially save millions of pounds in benefit fraud (continued below, note 1)
- professional help is extended to everyone
- psychological tests
- general fitness tests
- well-being tests
- and, critically, help and advice to be implemented during the period until the next check-up
- also, potential to develop in the workplace/community whereas a given talent may be otherwise overlooked.
- creation of jobs:
- students can go to University to learn specifically for the numerous roles that will be created (doctors/psychologists/nutritionists/life-coach specialists/financial advisors)
- their loans could be written-off after x amount of time employed in post-graduate role within Hotel Health-Check UK
- more menial tasks (security, admin., domestic services) for less-educated but genuinely looking to improve their life-style or get back to/into work
- planning and construction of Hotel Health-Check UK centres across the country, and subsequent implementation
- pre-emptive warnings of potential health hazards in individuals, social imbalances/concerns of family units and their members, or patterns occurring within regions that don't fit the norm.
- Benefits for immigrants can be earned/staged/monitored (note 1)
- instead of immigrants automatically receiving the same benefits as soon as they arrive as people who have legitimately paid into the UK coffers all of their working life, the level of benefits could be staged:
- initiation into the UK - basic accommodation and payment in the way of vouchers redeemable at government subsidised superstores
- first, second & third fifteen month check-ups - assessment of progression/integration into UK community, and benefits awarded accordingly
- assessment at fourth fifteen months check-up means any immigrants have been in the UK for five years - more stringent examination - if not working/contributing to the UK economy by this time, assess suitability for UK occupancy.
- Rewards for continued contribution, for everyone working towards the UK's prosperity and growth
- for periods of continued, taxable work, employees should receive a 'cash-back' reward from the Inland Revenue, representative of the total amount paid within that period, directly to the individual who has made those contributions;
- this should be repeated/cycled, say, every five years to coincide with Hotel Health-Check UK
- dependant upon the level earnings an individual has earned within that period could dictate the remuneration rewarded
- this may encourage people coming to the end of their working life to stay on until the next qualifying period cycle ends
This is a very simplistic view, and would rely heavily on pin-point administration through-out.
But this would be a huge step by everyone towards the Big Community, everyone being treated equally and everyone being rewarded for their contribution to the greater goal.
More days holiday for all, a sense of being cared for and, most of all, that we all can contribute but not that we're doing more of our fair share than others.
Remember - Hotel Health-Check UK - you heard it here, first.
Okay, okay - I give in. Let me start with my contribution - if you're trying to diet, but finding it difficult to shift weight, you should think about combining your nutrition regime with a proven exercise plan.
Synergy - the result of combining two processes with the result greater than each of individual components - just doo-oo-oo it!
By the time PayPal take their cut and I've paid my website host, I'm practically giving you the Elite Weight Loss Package here for $8.95...
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