Burger King has been accused of ‘shameful behaviour’ after punishing counter staff who failed to persuade enough customers to ‘go large’.

A branch in Fareham, Hampshire, pinned workers’ names on a wall of shame near the staff entrance and rationed their meal allowance during ten-hour shifts for failing to meet sales targets.

Student Ashley Walsh, 20, from Gosport, was one of five who received a letter saying their failure to sell 40 per cent of meals as large – persuading customers to upgrade their fries and drink from the standard size – was ‘unacceptable’ and would ‘not be tolerated’.

Burger King has been accused of ‘shameful behaviour’ after punishing counter staff who failed to persuade enough customers to ‘go large'

His meal allowance was cut from a double cheeseburger, fries and a drink to just fries and tap water.

Tory MP Andrew Selous, chairman of the all-party parliamentary group for obesity, said: ‘Any food outlet with a degree of morality would not act in this way.’

Burger King said: ‘This was an isolated incident that does not reflect our values or practices.’