Cheap shirts ?

Tesco have been running a series of anoying adverts over the last few weeks advertising thier "Back to School" range.

When I was a kid I used to hate the appareance at the start of the summer holidays of sales reminding you that you would be returning to school soon. He I was looking at the fat end of 6 weeks of freedom and the shops all wanted to hurry me back to the classroom.

But that is not what annoys me. Nowadays I say kids get far too much holiday - if the teachers can't be bothered to teach then then send the little sods up chimneys or down mines to stop them hanging around shopping centres spitting on people or riding buses playing stupid R&B from thier tinny mobile phone speakers. Never mind "Back to School", how about a "You don't get holidays because you don't deserve them and anyway we might as well give the teachers something to moan about" range.

I digress. What Tesco have done to make me angry is to push a pack of three polo shirts for less than 3 quid.

"What a bargain", I hear you cry, "In these credit crunch times you are really looking after us Mr Tesco."

Which would be fair enough, except we aren't really that poor in the UK. OK, things are tighter moneywise than they were but despite what the nutters who write into the ever entertaining Letters to Ceefax page (P145 - go on, it's hillarious) think, we are not as poor as most people in the third world. If you disagree, go and get a glass of water. Did you have to walk five miles and scoop it out of a fetted pool ? No you didn't so shut up about poverty.

No, a polo shirt for less than a pound means someone is losing out. Now I don't think the loser is Mr Tesco. OK, these might be a loss leader but I bet Tesco aren't subsidising it very much. These shirts are being produced for less than 50p each and that includes the cost of material.

Somewhere there is a factory making these things. It will be in the third world. The conditions inside will be pretty horrible. The workers will not be enjoying all the niceties we have come to expect in the way of clean and safe conditions, breaks and protection from the boss. Sadly there is a good chance that British children are wearing shirts that have been sown by children the same age who don't get the chance to go "Back to school".

If I'm right, and I hope I'm not, someone is paying for those clothes and it isn't the person at the till.