IT seems that the country is in a bit of a mess, so I’ll have a go at ‘reviewing the situation’.

I’ll do what most women do and take a good look at the housekeeping budget, to see where savings can and should be made.

My thoughts are that visitors, lodgers, hangers on, and unwanted guests must work, pay their way or be asked to leave.

People having large families must accept that it’s their decision, so they must be able to provide for them, and not expect the rest of the population to give them unlimited financial support, while greater care must be taken with the child allowance system.

I think we should stop those living here from bringing in family groups from abroad, unless they can prove they will not be a burden on the state.

Then we should curb the very large and often unnecessary contributions we give to other countries, such as the £278million we donate to India.

The next step would be to scrap income tax and put VAT on all goods, so we would all really be equal.

Then, we could build nuclear electricity plants instead of wasting money with expensive, ugly and useless wind farms, and thus free us from the threat of those in Europe who are in charge of our fuel supplies.

My mum always said ‘Being thrifty is not what you save, but what you avoid spending’.

Oh! I could go on, but, that’s quite enough carping for one day.

Carping! Now that’s a funny word, and it makes me think that we are all now speaking better, or perhaps I should say differently, although it could be a matter of opinion.

In ordinary conversation I never hear the phrases that were in very common usage only a few years ago such as ‘Get agate’ ‘tuppence short of a shilling’ or ‘shilly shalling’. Can you think of any more?

On Sunday, I attended a very special service to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee and her 60 years on the throne and, as I can clearly recall the Coronation, it was quite a humbling experience.

I have been trying to have a shower and realised that the best time to choose is not when you have just switched on the washing machine!