Thursday 3 September 2020

The BBC does investigative journalism

From the BBC:

The government has promised to push for an end to tariffs on UK-made ice cream vans during trade negotiations with the US, Australia and Japan...

The vans, many of whose owners also sell coffee, tea and frozen yogurt, are a familiar sight on UK roads.

During summer, they alert potential customers when they approach a park or suburban street by playing bursts of classic tunes, such as Greensleeves or Giovanni Capurro's O Sole Mio - known to many in the UK as the theme once used in Wall's Cornetto adverts...

[the UK] remains one of the world's leading exporters of the vehicles, which can sell for tens of thousands of pounds.

5 comments:

The Jannie said...

Our eldest saved a fortune while their kids were young: she told them that the chimes were played by the coalman . . .

Mark Wadsworth said...

DCB, apparently, some hard hearted parents tell their kids that ice cream wo/men only ring the chimes when they've run out of ice cream.

I quite like ice cream vans. I normally buy a cup of tea for myself, but my daughter loves getting a bubble gum ice cream (I'm still not sure what they are).

JC said...

Locally, the fave tune is 'Turkey in the Straw', but a posh neighborhood nearby insists on either a Brahms melody or a bit of fluff from Vivaldi

L fairfax said...

Stupid question but did the EU ask for this when they negotiated a free trade with Japan?

Mark Wadsworth said...

JC, wow. I'm clearly not in a posh neighbourhood then. Miffed!

LF, I'm not paranoid or anything, but probably yes.