If you enjoyed a roast lunch for Sunday dinner yesterday, you are not alone - the popular meal has been voted the nations favourite.A survey has found over half of Brits (54 percent) sit down for a Sunday roast dinner each week.That makes it almost as much of a British institution as couch potatoes, teenage mothers and violent gangs of hoodies.53 percent of those surveyed for Age Concern said the they enjoy the meal most when they spend it with their family. However one fifth of people (19 percent) say they are prevented from serving a Sunday roast because it takes too much time ... maybe that is just an excuse not to invite Grannie round. Lesley Waters, celebrity chef said: "Family and cooking are the most important things in my life and so for me this is a fantastic event. "A...

Further to this Guardian report, which slipped beneath my radar when it appeared last week, tomorrow's Scotland on Sunday reports that the Scottish Government plans to meet Norwegian officials to discuss a proposed new £2 billion connector to allow electricity to be transmitted between Norway and Scotland.The Scotland Act 1998 clearly states:International relations, including relations with territories outside the United Kingdom, the European Communities (and their institutions) and other international organisations, regulation of international trade, and international development assistance and co-operation are reserved matters.Also reserved is:Generation, transmission, distribution and supply of electricity. The subject-matter of Part II of the Electricity Act 1989.The report quotes a...

It must have been a bank holiday because it rained - very heavily - for most of the day! Not much of a welcome back for Felicity, who returned from the Chelsea Flower Show on Saturday. I started writing this post on Sunday, just after completing and e-mailing the first piece of coursework for the PGCert! It was been all stops out this last week to get it completed, and although the bulk of it was complete by Friday evening, it took a couple of days to proof read and ‘tweak’ before it was ready. It was a great relief to get it completed, but as the second piece has already been issued, there is little respite and I spent most of Monday starting that! This week I am in Bristol doing Financial Management course (5 days worth compressed into four!) and then it is back to the...

I’ve not been lazy since the last time I posted, just busy. Here’s a brief diary:Wednesday November 7Queen’s Speech debate on foreign affairs and defence, was to have opened for the Government by Lord Drayson, but he cried off just beforehand to start a new career in motor-racing. You couldn’t invent it, and it will be interesting to know what the real reasons were. Baroness (Anne) Taylor said it gave her great pleasure, and not a little surprise, to be taking his place. There were 44 speakers, who were invited to restrict themselves to 8 minutes, and in that time I touched on the crisis in Pakistan, and the forgotten agenda of Mr Blair’s Commission for Africa. I welcomed the belated addition of access to reproductive and sexual health services, including contraceptive advice...