Neat?

It sounds neat, but as the Scandinavians have shown, the flipside of such an over-active government isn't always pretty.

Postal services around the world are gearing up for their most frantic period of the year -- ensuring wishful letters from millions of children get through to the jolly fat man running the North Pole toy factory.

But in reindeer-dotted Sweden, where people think of Santa Claus as something of a local identity, the post office is ready to go just a little bit further in the spirit of Christmas.

Any child writing to the chap in red is guaranteed a personal reply and a small gift via a new dedicated Santa service, Posten spokeswoman Eva Appelgren told AFP on Saturday.

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