1. I’d be much obliged to you if you could spare me a moment and tell me some facts about ...

2. Will you be so kind as to tell me ...

3. I suppose ...

4. Excuse my interrupting you. Do you think you could help me understand ...

5. As it is known ...

6. Do you happen to know ...

7. I wonder if you could mention ...

8. Then from what you say it follows that ...

9. Do you mean to say that ...

10. It means that ..., doesn’t it?

11. I wonder, if you’d mind giving your opinion of ...

12. I appreciate your help. Thank you.

1) 1..................................................................................................

2. I’d be delighted if I could help you. What would you like to know?

2) 1. .................................................................................................

2. If I am not mistaken, the monarchy in the United Kingdom is more than a thousand years old.

3) 1. .................................................................................................

2. I’m afraid you are wrong here. It used to be absolute, but now it is constitutional.

4) 1. .................................................................................................

2. Certainly. Speaking of the term «constitutional monarchy» I’d like to begin with making a comparison between an absolute monarchy and a constitutional one. As far as I know in an absolute monarchy the monarch rules the country personally, whereas in a constitutional monarchy the monarch has no real power to govern. In other words, the monarch reigns but does not rule.

5) 1. .................................................................................................

2. Exactly. At present, it is Queen Elizabeth II who is the official head of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

6) 1. .................................................................................................

2. Of course, I do. Queen Elizabeth II succeeded to the throne in 1952.

7) 1. .................................................................................................

2. As for the powers of the Queen, they are as follows: in law, she is an integral part of the legislature, the head of the judiciary, the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the Crown and the temporal head of the established Church of England.

8) 1. .................................................................................................

2. By no means. As I said before, she is only the formal ruler. Actually, everything she does is done on the advice of her ministers.

9) 1. .................................................................................................

2. There’s no denying it. As a matter of fact, on the one hand most of the functions of the Queen are purely of a symbolic nature. But on the other hand it would be wrong to underestimate the role of monarchy in Britain.

10) 1. .................................................................................................

2. Yes, she does. The monarch does have great influence, to say nothing of the Royal Prerogative and, besides, the monarch retains an important attribute of power, that is to say, information. In short, the Monarch has the right to be consulted, the right to encourage, the right to warn.

11) 1. .................................................................................................

2. Frankly speaking, I think that the Queen is a symbol of Britain’s long history and tradition.

12) 1. .................................................................................................

2. (I’m) glad that I could help.

2.8. Talking point.

Some people think that the monarchy should be abolished because it has no power and it costs the State a lot of money to maintain. How useful do you think the monarchy is in Britain today?