Kraut not so sour

The term "kraut" - used by Britons to ridicule Germans since the First World War - is now perfectly acceptable, says Britain's Advertising Standards Agency.

It said it was no more than "a light-hearted reference to a national stereotype unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence".

The ruling rose after a complaint about a leaflet advertising sanding discs, sent just before an England-Germany football match, which said "The krauts are coming - with unbeatable quality." Germans in Britain said the word, which translates as cabbage, was offensive.