In Cyprus, as successive ministers climb out of chauffeur driven cars and make their way into the cabinet meeting, we can see that the government is divided. Between those men who lean forward, shoulders hunched; and others who lean back, stomach out and proud. Because man minus belly is like a house without a porch. Haven’t you heard that one before? Of course it’s not good to mock local people with their own proverbs: snide, even when gently applied. But hard to resist, when TV footage shows Cyprus swathed in Spring sunshine – the dappled light of English early evenings seems to last all day there, while here it has snapped cold and bleak again. Difficult not to snigger when pointing out that Cyprus counts for only 0.2 per cent of the Euro-economy; and, instead of propaganda leaflets or food parcels, the RAF is planning to drop a million Euros onto British civil servants and soldiers to ensure they don’t lose a penny from the bank account levy. Sorry, Cyprus, but to brutish Northerners you seem to have been living a charmed life – whether or not based on Russia’s funny money. Please excuse our lack of sympathy now it’s suddenly cut short.