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Experts are warning Britons about a sophisticated new scam.


The scam is devastating because the financial consequences are severe for everyone, but the full impact doesn’t become clear until it’s far too late.


‘We’re called it super-bait’n’switch,’ said an infeasibly young so-called scamspert.  ‘We want to tell everyone about it so that they can recognise the signs and avoid getting ripped off.


‘Here’s how the scam works.  Leader A gets elected on an agreed manifesto, that has been debated and agreed beforehand.  As soon as Leader A is in office, there are calls for his or her resignation. Leader A is then switched for Leader B, who says that all of Leader A’s decisions were rubbish and will need to be reversed.  In addition, Leader B promotes new policies, not in the manifesto, claiming that they are the ‘only way to save the country’.  Needless to say, the upheaval and the changes cost the country a fortune, and citizens foot the bill – either through higher taxes, reduced services or both.  This is a particularly cruel scam that impacts hardest on the poorest and most vulnerable.


‘Unfortunately, we are seeing more and more examples of this scam. There are often foreign actors involved – sometimes Russian, sometimes American, sometimes European.  Their influence is powerful, but hard to prove.  Recent examples of the scam include Boris Johnson, Theresa May, Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer.


‘Our main concern now is that bad actors may successfully combine this new scam with more traditional ones, such as romance scams. That would be terrifying.’




Trading Standards officers have been inundated with complaints about ‘ready to eat’ pears.  Customers say that, despite paying twice the price of ordinary pears, ready-to-eat pears are often anything but.


‘It’s obviously a scam,’ says pear-loving Colin Froot from Dorset.  ‘You buy regular pears in bulk, repackage them as ‘ready-to-eat’ and double the price.  Instant profit.  It’s the same dodgy crew that buy ordinary eggs and repackage them as free-range.


‘I’m fed up with buying ‘ready-to-eat’ pears that are so hard that you could rob a jewellers shop with them.  And when I buy a tray of ‘ready-to-eat’ pears and a bag of ripen at home pears, then guess what?  They are all bullet hard when I get them home, and they all suddenly and randomly go soft on the same day in about two weeks time.  And the day after that, they’re all just a sticky puddle in the fruit bowl.


‘Fresh fruit is a big scam.  In future, I’m only going to eat UPFs.  They’re not good for you, but at least you know what you’re getting.


Photo by khloe arledge on Unsplash

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