Admit it, chaps - you just prefer other chaps The problem we are up against is quite simple: men prefer other men. I don't mean sexual preference. Lord Browne, former chief executive of BP, was on Radio 4 yesterday asking business to "end its intolerance of homosexuality." Hey, mister, I shouted, get to the back of the queue! Let's eliminate discrimination against women first, if you don't mind! A report this week by Cranfield School of Management bears out my theory. It says the appointment of women to FTSE 350-listed non-executive director roles is being held back by selection processes which "ultimately favour candidates with similar characteristics to existing board members." Or penises, as they are more widely known. Chaps are more comfortable with other chaps. Only when a woman has been foisted on them and does a terrific job without crying or talking about Tampax do they start to see that we can be quite useful. For me, this fight is personal. A great friend, the inspiration for Kate Reddy, the heroine of my novel I Don't Know How She Does It, went straight into the City after university. For over 15 years, she was a successful fund manager, managing million of pounds worth of assets. After the birth of her fourth child, she gave up work. Or, rather, she stopped going into an office and the serious work began. As well as running a home and being a brilliant mum, she ran her school's PTA, fundraised, was treasurer of the parish council, sat on the boards of several charities, advising on investments, and then, just to add to the fun, she became the head of governors at a failing school, where she took action to turn the place around. Like many women when their children get older, she started putting feelers out for paid work. Her ideal role was a non-executive directorship, for which she is superbly qualified. At one search firm, she was told everything on her CV since she left the City was "irrelevant" and "of no interest to any board." Why the hell not? Show me a man who can manage a family of four children while taking on countless jobs in the community. The same men who offer us smug lectures on the Big Society are often the ones too small-minded to offer an opportunity to the women who make that Big Society work. I know so many talented females over forty who would be brilliant additions to British business. To those who protest that quotas are unfair, I would say that the status quo is no less unfair and not all male board members are there on merit. Let's recall the wise words of Kathleen O'Donovan, a multiple board member herself, who said acidly: "We will know we have achieved true equality when there are as many mediocre women on boards as there are mediocre men." Or when a senior woman falls asleep at a cricket match at half two in the afternoon and everyone thinks it's just great. A monarch to rule the waves Over the past 60 years, the Queen has put up with a lot for her country. Sunday will be no different. We are told that she will be seated on a throne on the deck of an elaborate gilded barge, sailing down the River Thames in unpredictable conditions, accompanied by 1,000 boats, her immediate family, the Poet Laureate and a floating belfry. As one does. If the British weather repeats what it did on the day of her Coronation - long to rain over us - then God save the Queen! The news that "sick bags will be provided" on board the royal barge will be of little comfort to our beloved monarch, who has to smile and wave, regardless. If, at the age of 86, the Queen would rather be tucked up at home with a cup of tea and her favourite shortbread, you can be sure she will give no indication of it. Only her cousin, Margaret Rhodes, has felt free to indicate that the Queen "slightly dreads the ship thing." I don't blame you, Ma'am. A golden barge could easily make people feel queasy in this age of austerity, and the heart does rather sink, though I'm sure Beatrice will wear a hat that can double as a life raft if you need one. The best news is that, in the latest poll, a whopping 69 per cent of respondents said Britain would be worse off without the monarchy. Britannia may no longer rule the waves, but Elizabeth II can walk on water. School exams" ruinous toll on family life Thanks to all who responded with such passion to last week's piece on our soul-crushing, mechanical examination system. I was shocked to learn how many children were being made physically and mentally ill by exams which promote a Stakhanovite culture of cramming while failing to reveal true levels of ability. "I read your article and wept," wrote one mum whose daughter was aiming for a career in medicine, but recently had a breakdown while trying to ram in facts for four A-levels. My beautiful, practical, grounded girl lost the plot, her mind descended into panic, she couldn't sleep. I found out she was spending all her break times in revision clinics," wrote Suzanne. Jane, who has three sons, protests, "Our family life has been dominated by this [craziness] for six years. No sooner have they jumped one hurdle than the next appears. This system is seriously detrimental to family life. The task of policing revision fell to me, on a good day using desperate negotiation, and on a bad, just yelling my head off. You are not alone, Jane. To desperate negotiation and yelling your head off you can add bribery and even anti-depressants for pupils struggling to cope. And here to tell you why is Isabelle, a bright 17-year-old being driven to distraction by her AS exams: "All I have done for five years is cram. Lessons do not really matter. When it comes to exams, you make revision cards, test yourself over and over and cram a load of facts. The minute you leave the exam hall, you forget them. I actually have very little knowledge despite getting nine A*s and three As at GCSE - to get those you need to be self-disciplined, not bright. I'm fed up of being part of this exam system, which is a shame because I actually love learning. I'm just hoping I can hang in there to finish my A-levels and still have the willpower to make it to university. I think that's what they call a damning indictment, don't you? We need fewer and better-quality exams which reward thinking and ability. I believe it was Socrates who said that the unexamined life is not worth living. He should have tried living the over-examined kind.