Say it is isn’t so. The Sydney Lord Mayor, it seems, has banned Tim Tams in case the chocolate is produced using child labour. Not only Tim Tams, but also bottled water, fat-rich cakes, dairy desserts and “bad” fish species. That’s it- no more Sydney Town Council functions for me.
But where to get a good nosh-up at a function these days? Some ten years ago, in a dual-sector university where I worked, Arnott’s Cream Assorted were loftily derided by higher-ed staff as “TAFE biscuits”. Nothing but danish pastries and blueberry mini muffins would do. Now we all pounce avidly upon the Monte Carlo and- even better still- the Kingston with servile gratitude at such bounty.
Mind you, in my day ANY sort of chocolate biscuit was luxury, child labour or not. I come from good home-cooking stock and can rustle up chocolate chip biscuits, chocolate brownies, date loaf and my special lemon slice with nary a thought. In fact, I am becoming increasingly aware, faced with tables of ‘bring a plate’ suppers all bearing their Coles labels, that home cooked biscuits and cakes are becoming quite endangered.
I have breathed Melbourne air for over fifty years and have never yet done a Tim Tam dunk.
At my age, I think it would be rather undignified.
The Resident Judge of Port Phillip 