On a day when Jaya joins me on the school run, after picking Joshua up from Kings we stop off at a BP/Asda service station. I get a black coffee and the kids share a sandwich and chocolate bar in a £3.75 meal deal. It is now a ritual. Today as I waited for my coffee to pour another Kings boy came up to Joshua and started talking.

This is Quincey and a photo for cat lovers everywhere.

As long term readers know, almost every year I plant a newly purchased Christmas tree in a large wooden pot, hoping that it will survive Christmas and then flourish outside until I can bring it in for the following Yuletide. On one occasion my tree lasted two years, most years including 2024, it died before getting a second run out and became part of the bonfire night celebration.

I explain why the new policy is not only wrong but will not alter the course of the Ukraine war while creating new risks for all of us.