You are going to England for holiday. You would like to stay for a few days at your English friend’s. Write a letter and ask if it is possible

· Describe briefly your holiday plans.

· Present your request.

· Say how long you would like to stay.

· Express hope for her/his return visit to Russia.

Write 120 – 150 words. Use informal letter plan given below.

LISTENING 2: POLITICS

(In Britain by Michael Vaugham-Rees, Track Politics)

A. Listen to the text “Parliament” and answer the questions below.

1) How many chambers are there in British Parliament and what are they?

2) What are the functions of each house?

3) How many MP’s or seats are there in the House of Commons and how many women are there among them?

4) Does the House of Lords consist of 1203 or 1205 members?

5) Who can be a member of the House of Lords?

6) Is the head of both Houses the Queen or Prime Minister?

B. Now listen to the speaker about forming a government and complete the description using words from the box.

The party with most (1) forms the (2). The leader of the winning party automatically becomes Prime Minister and (3) the Cabinet. The members of the Cabinet are the leading government (4). The prime minister is the most important person in (5) (Britain does not have a President). The party who comes second is the (6) and forms its own Shadow Cabinet. British Prime ministers have lived at 10 Downing Street since (7). The (8) (responsible for money and finance) lives next door at number (9). People often talk about (10) when they mean the Prime Minister and his or her Cabinet.

READING 3: GREAT BRITAIN ECONOMY

A. Before you read, think about main characteristics of a nation's economic system.

B. Skim-read the text and compare your answers with those offered in the text.