Britain’s 261 Diplomatic missions across the world are becoming fed up with bizarre demands for help from Britons abroad, with some of whom think the embassy is a service to assist finding lost sunglasses and pay bills.

The Foreign Office said that far-fetched requests for assistance had included tips on jam making and how to discipline misbehaving children.

”If you have a serious problem abroad – maybe you’ve been involved in an accident, have lost your passport or are a victim of crime – we can help you,” said Juliet Maric, the British Consul in Alicante on the Spanish east coast.

”But we can’t tell you who is allowed to use your swimming pool, pay your taxi fares for you – or do anything about the exchange rate.

”We regularly get inquiries from people who think we’re a one-stop-shop for any problem they might encounter while abroad; this can be frustrating as we need to focus resources on the serious cases that we’re there to help with.”

One request for help was from a lady who was unhappy about hew newly-boosted breasts post surgery, asked if the embassy could offer assistance.

A ‘distressed’ mother called the Florida consulate to help her son pack his bags and drive him to the airport as he was feeling sick.

Another called in consular assistance to find out how much fruit and sugar should be used when making jam.

A traveller in Italy asked the embassy where he could buy particular brands of shoes.

Other request for assistance included asking for embassy staff to pay a bill when a credit card had exceeded its limit, and a traveller asking “Can you tell me how to make my naughty son behave?”

”Our embassies are not there to provide weather reports or give advice on unruly children,” said consular affairs minister Chris Bryant.

He said that it was important that Britons understand what the Foreign Office can and can’t do for them.

Thanks to the Herald Sun for the above quotes.  For more information on this article, please visit their website.