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Today's Queen's Speech included a concerted attempt to rebrand the government as 'family friendly'. Will it work?

The proposals to extend flexible working rights and make it possible for mothers to transfer more of their maternity leave to their partners will make a difference. We know that flexibility is key to making it possible for families to earn enough to support themselves, and thus reduce child poverty.

But it won't make anywhere near the kind of difference we need.

Husbands and wives grow apart and no longer want to share a bed. Young people leave home and come back battered and scared when it all goes wrong. Grandparents provide more support for grand children whose parents are only just coping. We put up young people who are our children's friends - and a long weekend turns into three months. The children of a first marriage choose to spend more time than originally planned with the absent parent. And so it goes on. The point of family life is that it adapts, supports and flexes. For most of us this is a purely private matter.

How often do you see someone literally jumping for joy when you complete the redevelopment of a care home?

That's the happy ending to the story of Fledglings Court, a traditional and much-loved residential home in Market Weighton, East Yorkshire, which provides support to 14 adults with learning difficulties.

Pick up any JRHT board report from the past two years and you’ll see the essential, but rather dry, facts behind this redevelopment.

The UK has always been a hugely centralised country, and London persistently dominates the national agenda. This year, in particular, all eyes are focused on London and the economic and social benefits the Olympics will bring to the country.