SOME of us who have been subjected to management exercises will have a wry smile at our story of the experience of a very alert cleaner at Skipton station.

Anyone who, as part of some bizarre initiative test, has tramped across open countryside in a blustery gale, perched precariously over a freezing cold river, or dug a hole in the ground to serve as a lavatory late at night will wonder what on earth was the point of the exercise.

We blame the Americans. Team bonding and facing perils of the open countryside might be productive role play in their eyes but thousands of fed up employees would far sooner have been perched in front of the telly, or at a bar practicing their social skills.

So a big bouquet to the conscientious cleaner and a big raspberry to the person who dreamed up this fandango. Magnet have been curiously reluctant to explain the benefits of putting a suspect package in lavatory cisterns at the railway station. But maybe some good has come out of it and someone, somewhere has learnt a very important lesson.