My niece living in Croatia has a dog who has become her constant companion. This is no known breed of a dog. It is in fact a mongrel. I remember the dogs running around in my childhood. We bought our family dog for 2p and called him Tuppy. Bought from someone whose dog had had puppies.

There was something about dogs at that time which still appeals to me. An air about them that sets them apart from all the special breeds we have today. It’s difficult to describe – to my mind just different.

With all the interest in finding out about our DNA, from what I hear, we have a similar mongrel element about us.

Napoleon described us as a 'Nation of Shopkeepers’. We were also a Nation of Traders. It is with satisfaction that we have now risen from 7th to 4th in world trading - [This Little Island] - now we are independent and that we have regained the Stock Exchange as the foremost in Europe.

I don’t think this has anything to do with Politicians as I would like to put it down to people – the mongrels?