How do you solve a problem like...a law that works?

Now, here's a dilemma...in the UK we have the Criminal Records Bureau check, or the CRB. Now, this CRB is intended to catch those nasty people who want to work with children for very wrong reasons.

It does, after all, make a degree of sense to keep convicted sex offenders away from children - the easiest way to fail the CRB check is to be on the sex offenders register.

So far, so good,

But it turns out that Harriet Harman has found a group she believes is discriminated against by this. Have a look here...

The Government Equalities Office, which is overseen by Labour’s deputy leader, is promoting claims that devotees of skinny dipping and nudist campsites suffer prejudice equivalent to that experienced by gays, ethnic minorities and the elderly.

A submission written by British Naturism has been included in a review into discrimination. “Naturists encounter prejudice in employment,” it reads.

“This is a particular problem for people in the caring professions and education. Any occupation requiring an enhanced Criminal Record Bureau check is potentially a serious problem.”

So the problem really is differentiating between those who expose themselves to others...and those who expose themselves to others in some way that is (somewhat?) socially acceptable.

But the law is working exactly as intended.

By going the whole anti-discrimination route you cause a whole heap of problems. You can just imagine - court cases claiming that some poor unfortunate was discriminated against because s/he is a naturist. Completely impossible to prove of course...

Or there's always Plan B - change the CRB rules to allow you to appeal the result and defend certain charges, by pointing out that it was at a registered naturist site, for example...

But this is Harriet - why be sensible in the face of discrimination?