Translate the following text from English into your own language. AN ENGLISHMAN’S home, it is said, is his castle

AN ENGLISHMAN’S home, it is said, is his castle. Little surprise then that the prospect of a “mansion tax” on British property worth over £2 million ($3 million) has rich homeowners up in arms. Even celebrities are voicing their opposition; stars like Sol Campbell, an ex-footballer, and MyleeneKlass, a singer, have lambasted the proposal. But they could not deter both the Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats from including the tax in their election manifestos. Labour says the tax (which they reckon would raise about £1.2 billion a year) will be progressive. Those with homes just over the threshold would only pay about £3,000 per year, and owners of affected homes with low incomes would be able to defer the tax payments until their property was sold. The threshold would also rise over time in line with the average increase in high-value property prices. But opponents of the tax object that it will primarily hit residents of modest homes in pricey London, rather than “mansions”. That, they say, is unfair to long-term residents who, though paper millionaires, did not ask for their homes to soar in value. Who will pay the mansion tax?

5. Fun Time. Game “BELOW THE BELT”

Here are twenty articles of clothing, arranged in alphabetical order. Sort them into 2 groups: clothing worn above the belt and clothing worn below the belt.

blouse garter sporran

brooch kilt tiara

clogs leggings tie

collar mittens tights

cravat pop-socks trunks

cuff shawl waist-coat

flip-flops slippers

Worn above the belt

Worn below the belt

GRAMMAR ZONE

Language focus: Inversion

Comment on the word order in sentences 1-4. What effect is the writer hoping to achieve by placing the words which are written in bold at the beginning of the sentence?

1) Rarely, if ever, do we sit down in our own home to listen to a full performance of a piece of music.

2) No sooner have we settled into our armchair than we think of something else we could be doing.

3) On no account should you kiss your children once the concert has started.

4) When travelling by bus, I do not sing arias from Handel’s Messiah. Nor do I whistle along to the music at weddings.

 

Rewrite the sentences 1-4 in exercise 1 so that the words in bold do not appear at the beginning of the sentence.

Example: We rarely, if ever, sit down in our own home to listen to a full performance of a piece of music.

 

Rewrite the following sentences, beginning with the words given.

1. We only very rarely go to the cinema these days.

Only very rarely ____________ .

2. I have never seen such a terrible performance of Hamlet before.

Never before ______________ .

3. Bags must not be left unattended at any time.

At no time _______________ .

4. The identity of the murderer is not revealed until the very last page.

Not until __________________ .

5. They only realized the painting had been hung upside down when someone complained at reception.

Only when_________________ .

 

4. Rewrite sentences 1-5, beginning with the word in italics.

 

1. He would never play in front of a live audience again.

2. She had hardly sat down to watch her favouriteprogramme when the phone rang.

3. You will not be allowed to enter the auditorium under any circumstances once the play has started.

4. We not only went to the National Gallery, but we also saw a West End musical.

5. Amy had not enjoyed herself so much since she went to the circus as a child.

 

Complete the following sentences so that they are true for you.

 

a) Only very rarely do I ______ .

b) Under no circumstances would I __ .

c) Never again will I __________ .

d) Not once in my life have I ___ .

e) Not since _________________ have I _______________________________ .

f) Not until _________________ did I _ .

 

Comment on and discuss your sentences with your partner.

FOCUS ON LISTENING

 

In pairs, discuss the following questions

1. What do you know about International Trade? What forms of international trade do you know?

2. What is the role of International Trade in the world economy?

3. What do the terms ‘export’ and ‘import’ mean?

4. What do you know about the methods of payment?

production efficientinput traderesources allocatecapabilities products absolute advantageprovideexchange

2. While listening, complete the following passage from‘Theories of Trade’ by inserting the words in the box:

 

Theories of Trade

To explain why countries (1) ________, we must look at a little economic theory. The first concept we consider is called a theory of (2) ___________. If a country has the absolute advantage in a (3) __________of goods or services, it means it’s the most (4) _______ producer of that product. In other words, if all countries use the same (5) _______ in their production process, this country would be able to make more better quality products than all the others.

Let’s construct a simplified theoretical example to illustrate the point. Imagine for a moment that we live in a world where there are only two countries: South Africa and Japan. And both countries have different (6) _________ to produce two products: wheat and DVDs. And over a certain period of time South Africa can either produce 55 bags of wheat or 11 DVDs, using all their (7) ________. Japan, on the other hand, can either produce 18 bags of wheat or 72 DVDs, using all the available inputs that they have. So, knowing that each country must choose how to (8) ________ its resources between the production of these two goods, does it make sense for South Africa to produce any DVDs. The answer is ‘no’. Japan is obviously much more efficient in the production of DVDs than South Africa. And South Africa is much more efficient in the production of wheat than Japan. But both countries need both (9) ________. So it makes sense for South Africa to (10) _______ Japan with South African wheat in (11) ________ for DVDs made in Japan.