The Cabinet Office provides a grant of £250,000 a year towards its upkeep. The actor Patrick Stewart was also among the guests on 21 February last year, along with Maria Wallis, the chief constable of Devon and Cornwall Police.The former lead singer of Ugly Rumours at university also likes to invite rock stars. Mick Hucknall, of Simply Red, broke bread alongside Sir Liam Donaldson, the chief medical officer on 9 October 2004.The chat show hosts Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan were invited to dinner on Saturday 17 May 2003 with the actor Sir Ben Kingsley Cherie Blair later appeared on Richard & Judy. The Murdoch-owned Sun decisively came out in favour of Labour before the election in May.Though guests have included Tory supporters such as Cilla Black, invitations more usually go to New Labour "luvvies" such as Richard Wilson, the star of One Foot in the Grave.
On the same Saturday night last July, John Reid, then the Health Secretary, shared the table with Maggie Thurer, a mental health specialist, and Simon Stevens, then Mr Blair's health policy adviser at Downing Street.But perhaps pride of place that night went to James Murdoch, the son of Rupert Murdoch, and chief executive of BSkyB. Mr Greenwood had earned his place by producing the judgment that reinforced Mr Blair's case that it would be legal to go to war against Iraq.The lists show that the Blairs carefully juggle guests so that no one is left alone around the table. The Hollywood actor and director found that the other 14 guests included a police chief, union official, head of prisons and a Cabinet Office secretary.The insight into how the Blairs spend their Saturday nights at Chequers - and their sometimes bizarre choice of dinner guests - was revealed for all to see under the Freedom of Information Act over the weekend.The guest lists read like a who's who of New Labour supporters, mini-celebrities, businessmen and fading pop stars, sprinkled withoccasional surprise figures such as Christopher Greenwood QC, the professor of international law, who rubbed shoulders with Phil Bobbit, another law professor, and Paul Myners, acting head of Marks & Spencer. When Kevin Spacey arrived for dinner at Tony and Cherie's country residence, he must have been expecting a star-studded evening. The guest list at Chequers, however, proved more eclectic.
We both have two children and have been job sharing for so long that we've built up a real partnership. Benefits and holidays are divided between us pro rata."New technology has made Jayne's job much easier in recent years, especially when it comes to the handover."I love having two extra days at home to give my children individual attention," she says.. So I approached my employer, who was willing to be flexible."Jayne then set up a job share with colleague Sue Robinson."Sue works two days a week and I work three. "But working full-time after my daughter was born became too much. Otherwise, you could find yourself back working the sort of long hours you left the office to avoid.A JOB SPLIT, TIME AT HOME DOUBLEDJayne Woolmore, an executive secretary for Skipton building society, has been sharing a job for the past decade.The arrangement has made all the difference in allowing the 41-year-old mother of two to spend more time with her young children.Jayne began job sharing just after the birth of her first child, Eleanor, who is now 12."I knew I wanted to go back to work," she says. Keep boundaries between your working and private life and make sure they don't become blurred. But if you opt for this arrangement, be aware that both your state pension entitlement and any private pension provision will be affected."You can negotiate on benefits [such as holidays or health insurance]," says Jonathan Swan of Working Families, "but your pension will be in proportion to your hours and your salary."Teleworking (where you work from home, maintaining contact with colleagues, customers or a central office via a phone and computer) has been made much easier thanks to high-speed broadband.If you choose to work alone, you must be prepared for the isolation.
