Sounds Familiar....

It's often been said that Tikka Masala is the British national dish. But it might not be for much longer, as figures show two curry houses are closing in Britain each week due to a shortage of chefs.

This crisis is due in part to the retirement of the original wave of immigrants in the 1970s who set up curry houses. But the industry is also suffering due to immigration laws which make it difficult to bring chefs to the UK from abroad.

Oh noes! What can we do? Could we....maybe train some?

Well, one man plans to try:

An award-winning curry house owner plans to train budding youngsters looking to master Asian cuisine.

Ibrahim Ali, who runs the popular Usha Restaurant in Burnley, said he hopes to launch a curry college within the next 12 months in the face of a national staff shortage.

Hurrah!

But...there's a snag. And it's the usual one.

Ibrahim, who was a winner at the British Curry Awards and is Usha’s executive head chef, said: “The staff we have got at the minute are all over 35. The work is very difficult and it’s hard for us to engage with young people.

“I have tried. I have had apprentices, they do four or five weeks and then come up with excuses. We start work at 5pm and finish at 10pm, but the workload between then is heavy.

“We are finding it hard to attract the new generation. It’s hot, there’s shouting, and there are demands.”

Yup, the laziness and entitlement culture of today's youth strikes again.