Unwanted oar

Anyone spot that the Citizens' Advice Service has banned the word blacklist because it might be seen as offensive. Offensive to who they don't say but I suspect that someone with more time on their hands than is good for them is sticking their politically correct oar in to defend the sensibilities of people who have never wasted time thinking about blacklist, or Blackpool, or blackcurrant or blackberry or anything else containing the dreaded B word.

I suspect the number of complaints must have been running well into zero figures but that hardly matters to the politically correct.

Its rather like adolescent boys sniggering in class whenever something such as Cockfosters or Blue Tit comes up except its not juvenile sexual innuendo but a much more sinister manipulation and perversion of language by not just the Citizens' Advice branch of the thought police but just about every other half-baked official and semi-official bunch who seem to think they are the keepers of the Queen's English.

On second thoughts think of the offence that could cause! That had better be changed to Reigning Monarch's English - can't be too careful.

Meanwhile in the Citizens' Advice Service HQ - nearest bridge over the Thames Blackfriars so that will have to be changed - I suspect that whichever soul came up with the idea to blacklist blacklist didn't bother to discover the origins of the word which have nothing to do with race or colour but are part of our history whatever colour you happen to be.

It seems Charles II had his own version of a little black book with a list of those responsible or implicated in the death of his father - the black list. If you were on it then you were out of favour in a big way.

So as a bit of advice to the advisors stick to what you are good at, helping people who need it, and leave language to its own devices. There are enough wrongs in the world without finding imaginary and rather fatuous ones to champion.