考研英语二押题密卷1

Text 4 Visiting Oxford Street,a rwd fiUing wilh tatty shop,and overcrowded with people,is plainly a trial.Less plainly,levels of nitrogen dioxide（NO2）,a noxious gas,have been found to be around three times higher there Lhan the legal limit.In 2013 the annual mean concentration of N02 0n the street was one of the highest levels found anywhere in Europe.British air is far cleaner than it was a few decades ago.Fewer people use coal-burning stoves;old industrial plants have been decommissioned.But since 2009 levels of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter,coarse or fine particles that are linked to lung cancer and asthma,have fallen more slowly.The exact iiumber of deaths caused by dirty air is unknown.But in 2010 a govemment advisory group estimated that removing man-made fine particulate matter from the atmosphere woulcl in crease life expeclancy for ihose born in 2008 by an average of six months.Much of the slowdown is the result of fumes from diesel cars,which were championed by successive governments because they use less fuel and thus produce less carbon dioxide than petrol cars.In 2001 0nly 14%0f all cars ran on diesel;by 2013 the proportion had increased t0 35%.（Greener"hybrid"and elecLric cars have increased nine fold since 2006,but account for just 0.5%of the entire fleet.）Second-hand cars are particularly noxious,but even newer ones have not been as clean as hoped.Many cars that let out few pollutants in tests procluced more on the roads.Government's hesitation has not helped.Part of the problem is that several departmenLs are responsible for air pollution.This means nobody has taken a lead on it,complains Joan Walley,a Labour MP who chairs an environmental committee that has released a series of damning reports.And few politicians are keen to fire drivers.However,some improvements have been made.In 2008 a"low-enussion zone"was created in London,which targets large vans and coaches.A smaller"uhra low-enussion zone"has been proposed for 2020,which would charge all vehicles that are not of a certain standard 12.50 pounds a day.European Comnussion fines for breaching limits may encourage cities to do more.But oLher countries are more ambitious:60 such zones exist in Germany,targeting private cars as well as vans.In December Anne Hidalgo,the mayor of Paris,announced that she wanted to ban diesel cars by 2020.

Govemments try to reduce air pollution by______

Text 4 Visiting Oxford Street,a rwd fiUing wilh tatty shop,and overcrowded with people,is plainly a trial.Less plainly,levels of nitrogen dioxide（NO2）,a noxious gas,have been found to be around three times higher there Lhan the legal limit.In 2013 the annual mean concentration of N02 0n the street was one of the highest levels found anywhere in Europe.British air is far cleaner than it was a few decades ago.Fewer people use coal-burning stoves;old industrial plants have been decommissioned.But since 2009 levels of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter,coarse or fine particles that are linked to lung cancer and asthma,have fallen more slowly.The exact iiumber of deaths caused by dirty air is unknown.But in 2010 a govemment advisory group estimated that removing man-made fine particulate matter from the atmosphere woulcl in crease life expeclancy for ihose born in 2008 by an average of six months.Much of the slowdown is the result of fumes from diesel cars,which were championed by successive governments because they use less fuel and thus produce less carbon dioxide than petrol cars.In 2001 0nly 14%0f all cars ran on diesel;by 2013 the proportion had increased t0 35%.（Greener"hybrid"and elecLric cars have increased nine fold since 2006,but account for just 0.5%of the entire fleet.）Second-hand cars are particularly noxious,but even newer ones have not been as clean as hoped.Many cars that let out few pollutants in tests procluced more on the roads.Government's hesitation has not helped.Part of the problem is that several departmenLs are responsible for air pollution.This means nobody has taken a lead on it,complains Joan Walley,a Labour MP who chairs an environmental committee that has released a series of damning reports.And few politicians are keen to fire drivers.However,some improvements have been made.In 2008 a"low-enussion zone"was created in London,which targets large vans and coaches.A smaller"uhra low-enussion zone"has been proposed for 2020,which would charge all vehicles that are not of a certain standard 12.50 pounds a day.European Comnussion fines for breaching limits may encourage cities to do more.But oLher countries are more ambitious:60 such zones exist in Germany,targeting private cars as well as vans.In December Anne Hidalgo,the mayor of Paris,announced that she wanted to ban diesel cars by 2020.

According to Paragraph 2,life span may be related to______

Text 4 Visiting Oxford Street,a rwd fiUing wilh tatty shop,and overcrowded with people,is plainly a trial.Less plainly,levels of nitrogen dioxide（NO2）,a noxious gas,have been found to be around three times higher there Lhan the legal limit.In 2013 the annual mean concentration of N02 0n the street was one of the highest levels found anywhere in Europe.British air is far cleaner than it was a few decades ago.Fewer people use coal-burning stoves;old industrial plants have been decommissioned.But since 2009 levels of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter,coarse or fine particles that are linked to lung cancer and asthma,have fallen more slowly.The exact iiumber of deaths caused by dirty air is unknown.But in 2010 a govemment advisory group estimated that removing man-made fine particulate matter from the atmosphere woulcl in crease life expeclancy for ihose born in 2008 by an average of six months.Much of the slowdown is the result of fumes from diesel cars,which were championed by successive governments because they use less fuel and thus produce less carbon dioxide than petrol cars.In 2001 0nly 14%0f all cars ran on diesel;by 2013 the proportion had increased t0 35%.（Greener"hybrid"and elecLric cars have increased nine fold since 2006,but account for just 0.5%of the entire fleet.）Second-hand cars are particularly noxious,but even newer ones have not been as clean as hoped.Many cars that let out few pollutants in tests procluced more on the roads.Government's hesitation has not helped.Part of the problem is that several departmenLs are responsible for air pollution.This means nobody has taken a lead on it,complains Joan Walley,a Labour MP who chairs an environmental committee that has released a series of damning reports.And few politicians are keen to fire drivers.However,some improvements have been made.In 2008 a"low-enussion zone"was created in London,which targets large vans and coaches.A smaller"uhra low-enussion zone"has been proposed for 2020,which would charge all vehicles that are not of a certain standard 12.50 pounds a day.European Comnussion fines for breaching limits may encourage cities to do more.But oLher countries are more ambitious:60 such zones exist in Germany,targeting private cars as well as vans.In December Anne Hidalgo,the mayor of Paris,announced that she wanted to ban diesel cars by 2020.

Oxford Street is mentioned in the opening paragraph to_____

Text 4 Visiting Oxford Street,a rwd fiUing wilh tatty shop,and overcrowded with people,is plainly a trial.Less plainly,levels of nitrogen dioxide（NO2）,a noxious gas,have been found to be around three times higher there Lhan the legal limit.In 2013 the annual mean concentration of N02 0n the street was one of the highest levels found anywhere in Europe.British air is far cleaner than it was a few decades ago.Fewer people use coal-burning stoves;old industrial plants have been decommissioned.But since 2009 levels of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter,coarse or fine particles that are linked to lung cancer and asthma,have fallen more slowly.The exact iiumber of deaths caused by dirty air is unknown.But in 2010 a govemment advisory group estimated that removing man-made fine particulate matter from the atmosphere woulcl in crease life expeclancy for ihose born in 2008 by an average of six months.Much of the slowdown is the result of fumes from diesel cars,which were championed by successive governments because they use less fuel and thus produce less carbon dioxide than petrol cars.In 2001 0nly 14%0f all cars ran on diesel;by 2013 the proportion had increased t0 35%.（Greener"hybrid"and elecLric cars have increased nine fold since 2006,but account for just 0.5%of the entire fleet.）Second-hand cars are particularly noxious,but even newer ones have not been as clean as hoped.Many cars that let out few pollutants in tests procluced more on the roads.Government's hesitation has not helped.Part of the problem is that several departmenLs are responsible for air pollution.This means nobody has taken a lead on it,complains Joan Walley,a Labour MP who chairs an environmental committee that has released a series of damning reports.And few politicians are keen to fire drivers.However,some improvements have been made.In 2008 a"low-enussion zone"was created in London,which targets large vans and coaches.A smaller"uhra low-enussion zone"has been proposed for 2020,which would charge all vehicles that are not of a certain standard 12.50 pounds a day.European Comnussion fines for breaching limits may encourage cities to do more.But oLher countries are more ambitious:60 such zones exist in Germany,targeting private cars as well as vans.In December Anne Hidalgo,the mayor of Paris,announced that she wanted to ban diesel cars by 2020.

Successive governments have advocatecl diesel cars becduse______

Text 4 Visiting Oxford Street,a rwd fiUing wilh tatty shop,and overcrowded with people,is plainly a trial.Less plainly,levels of nitrogen dioxide（NO2）,a noxious gas,have been found to be around three times higher there Lhan the legal limit.In 2013 the annual mean concentration of N02 0n the street was one of the highest levels found anywhere in Europe.British air is far cleaner than it was a few decades ago.Fewer people use coal-burning stoves;old industrial plants have been decommissioned.But since 2009 levels of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter,coarse or fine particles that are linked to lung cancer and asthma,have fallen more slowly.The exact iiumber of deaths caused by dirty air is unknown.But in 2010 a govemment advisory group estimated that removing man-made fine particulate matter from the atmosphere woulcl in crease life expeclancy for ihose born in 2008 by an average of six months.Much of the slowdown is the result of fumes from diesel cars,which were championed by successive governments because they use less fuel and thus produce less carbon dioxide than petrol cars.In 2001 0nly 14%0f all cars ran on diesel;by 2013 the proportion had increased t0 35%.（Greener"hybrid"and elecLric cars have increased nine fold since 2006,but account for just 0.5%of the entire fleet.）Second-hand cars are particularly noxious,but even newer ones have not been as clean as hoped.Many cars that let out few pollutants in tests procluced more on the roads.Government's hesitation has not helped.Part of the problem is that several departmenLs are responsible for air pollution.This means nobody has taken a lead on it,complains Joan Walley,a Labour MP who chairs an environmental committee that has released a series of damning reports.And few politicians are keen to fire drivers.However,some improvements have been made.In 2008 a"low-enussion zone"was created in London,which targets large vans and coaches.A smaller"uhra low-enussion zone"has been proposed for 2020,which would charge all vehicles that are not of a certain standard 12.50 pounds a day.European Comnussion fines for breaching limits may encourage cities to do more.But oLher countries are more ambitious:60 such zones exist in Germany,targeting private cars as well as vans.In December Anne Hidalgo,the mayor of Paris,announced that she wanted to ban diesel cars by 2020.

Considering the role that government plays,the author seems to be______

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of l.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.2选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of l.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.4选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of l.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.1选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of l.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.3选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.13选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.12选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.5选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.6选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.7选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.10选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.8选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.15选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.9选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.11选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.16选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.14选？

Text l With polished stone floors and a plate-glass roof,a shining multi-storey shopping mall has just opened beside a motorway north of Paris.Named Qwartz,and costing 300m,it houses 165 shops and what developers call"eating concepts".Two other American-style shopping malls opened in the greater Paris region last year,and a third,So Ouest,in 2012.A country that prides iiself on fashion designer boutiques and aflisanal shops seernq to be turning into one of mall rats.Partly ihis is just catching up.Until recently,strict planning rules stopped big out of-town shopping centres around the French capilal.Most malls that existed,such as V61izy 2 or Rosny 2,dated from the 1970s,when rive new towns were built in the Paris suburbs.But a new relaxed attitude has now let more modem projects go ahead.It also points to two features of French society that escape the gaze of historic Paris.One is most shoppers'suburban way of life.Only 2.2m people live in the capital itself.Yet the greater Paris region,excluding the city,counts over four times more inhabitanLs,many in small towns and car dependent suburbs.The new malls,ringed by car parks,are handy,even aUuring.Fully 62%of the French told one poll that malls were cheir favourite places to shop,ahead of the high street or traditiOPal department stores.The other trend is the global taste of consumers.Besides a huge French hypermarket,Qwartz's big puU is Primark,an Irish cheap-fashion retailer,and Marks&Spencer,a British chain.Jusc down the road,So Ouest boasts Hollister,an American surfwear brand,Starbucks,an American coffee house,and foreign fashion chains such as H&M ancl Zara.In today's temples of consumption,global is a La mode.This is not quite the France favoured by Amaud Montebourg,the industry minister and architect of a"Made in France"campaign.He is now trying to keep Amencan hands off Alstom,the French maker of TCV fast trains.He once posed cheerfully for a magazine,dressed in a striped Breton top and holding a Moulinex food-blender.Yet even French brands are not always home-made,as Benjamin Carle,a reporter,discovered filming a television documeniary about his efforts to live for a year using only products made in France.The result was comic-and sobering.Not only was it impossible to find some items,including a fridge and coffee.Mr Carle initially had to empty his flat of anyLhing that did not meet the test of 50%of its value being made in France.Out went the bicycle,computer,guitar,most of the furnilure,beer.clothes,toothbrush and more.The share of his stuff that qualified as French-made?Just 4.5%.

For shoppers who live in the suburb,the new shopping malls are_____

Text l With polished stone floors and a plate-glass roof,a shining multi-storey shopping mall has just opened beside a motorway north of Paris.Named Qwartz,and costing 300m,it houses 165 shops and what developers call"eating concepts".Two other American-style shopping malls opened in the greater Paris region last year,and a third,So Ouest,in 2012.A country that prides iiself on fashion designer boutiques and aflisanal shops seernq to be turning into one of mall rats.Partly ihis is just catching up.Until recently,strict planning rules stopped big out of-town shopping centres around the French capilal.Most malls that existed,such as V61izy 2 or Rosny 2,dated from the 1970s,when rive new towns were built in the Paris suburbs.But a new relaxed attitude has now let more modem projects go ahead.It also points to two features of French society that escape the gaze of historic Paris.One is most shoppers'suburban way of life.Only 2.2m people live in the capital itself.Yet the greater Paris region,excluding the city,counts over four times more inhabitanLs,many in small towns and car dependent suburbs.The new malls,ringed by car parks,are handy,even aUuring.Fully 62%of the French told one poll that malls were cheir favourite places to shop,ahead of the high street or traditiOPal department stores.The other trend is the global taste of consumers.Besides a huge French hypermarket,Qwartz's big puU is Primark,an Irish cheap-fashion retailer,and Marks&Spencer,a British chain.Jusc down the road,So Ouest boasts Hollister,an American surfwear brand,Starbucks,an American coffee house,and foreign fashion chains such as H&M ancl Zara.In today's temples of consumption,global is a La mode.This is not quite the France favoured by Amaud Montebourg,the industry minister and architect of a"Made in France"campaign.He is now trying to keep Amencan hands off Alstom,the French maker of TCV fast trains.He once posed cheerfully for a magazine,dressed in a striped Breton top and holding a Moulinex food-blender.Yet even French brands are not always home-made,as Benjamin Carle,a reporter,discovered filming a television documeniary about his efforts to live for a year using only products made in France.The result was comic-and sobering.Not only was it impossible to find some items,including a fridge and coffee.Mr Carle initially had to empty his flat of anyLhing that did not meet the test of 50%of its value being made in France.Out went the bicycle,computer,guitar,most of the furnilure,beer.clothes,toothbrush and more.The share of his stuff that qualified as French-made?Just 4.5%.

According to the text,Arnaud Montebourg is_____

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.19选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.17选？

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only 1.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of l.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.20选？

Text 2 Britain's flexible labour market was a boon during the economic slump,helping keep joblessness down and then,when the recovery began,allowing employment to rise.Yet one of its bendier bits is causing politicians to fret.Ed Miliband,the leader of the Labour Party,has promised a crackdown on"zero-hours contracts"if he wins the next election.The government has launched a con8ultation.Zero-hours contracts allow finns to employ workers for as few or as many hours as they need,with no prior notice.In theory,at least,people can refuse work.Fully l.4m jobs were based on these contracts in January 2014,according to the Office for National Statistics.That is just 4%of the total,but the share rises to a quarter in the hospitality business.The contracts are useful for finns with unstable pattems of demand,such as hotels and restauranLs.Ihey have also helped firms to expand during the recovery-allowing them to test new business lines before hiring permanem stafir,who would be more costly to make redundani if things went wrong.Flexibility suits some workers,too.According to one survey,47%of those employed on zerohours conUacts were content to have no nunimum contracted hours.Many of these workers are in full-time education.The ability to tum down work is important to students,who want to revise at this time of year.Pensioners keen for a liLtle extra income can often live with the uncertainty of not having guaranteed hours.Yet that leaves more than a quarter of workers on zero-hours contracts who say they are unhappy wirh their condirions.Some of this is cyclical.During recessions,a dearth of permanent positions forces people into jobs with no contracted hours even if they do not want them.Underemployment is pfuticularly prevalent among these workers,35%of whom would like more hours compared with 12qo in offier jobs.As the economy recovers,many should be able to renegotiate their contracts or find permanent jobs.But the recovery will not cause unwanted zero-hours contracts to disappear.Some workers will never have much negoLiating power:they are constrained by geography,family commitments and lack of competition for their skills among a small number of big employers.Zero-hours contracts make it easier for employers to abuse their labour-market power.Some use them to avoid statutory obligations such as sick and matenuty pay.Workers are penalised for not being available when requested.And some contracts contain exclusivity clauses which prevent workers from taking additional jobs.These can harm other employers as well as workers,and actually reduce labour market flexibility.That,at least,is worth doing away with.

According to Paragraph l,politicians are concemed about_____

Text l With polished stone floors and a plate-glass roof,a shining multi-storey shopping mall has just opened beside a motorway north of Paris.Named Qwartz,and costing 300m,it houses 165 shops and what developers call"eating concepts".Two other American-style shopping malls opened in the greater Paris region last year,and a third,So Ouest,in 2012.A country that prides iiself on fashion designer boutiques and aflisanal shops seernq to be turning into one of mall rats.Partly ihis is just catching up.Until recently,strict planning rules stopped big out of-town shopping centres around the French capilal.Most malls that existed,such as V61izy 2 or Rosny 2,dated from the 1970s,when rive new towns were built in the Paris suburbs.But a new relaxed attitude has now let more modem projects go ahead.It also points to two features of French society that escape the gaze of historic Paris.One is most shoppers'suburban way of life.Only 2.2m people live in the capital itself.Yet the greater Paris region,excluding the city,counts over four times more inhabitanLs,many in small towns and car dependent suburbs.The new malls,ringed by car parks,are handy,even aUuring.Fully 62%of the French told one poll that malls were cheir favourite places to shop,ahead of the high street or traditiOPal department stores.The other trend is the global taste of consumers.Besides a huge French hypermarket,Qwartz's big puU is Primark,an Irish cheap-fashion retailer,and Marks&Spencer,a British chain.Jusc down the road,So Ouest boasts Hollister,an American surfwear brand,Starbucks,an American coffee house,and foreign fashion chains such as H&M ancl Zara.In today's temples of consumption,global is a La mode.This is not quite the France favoured by Amaud Montebourg,the industry minister and architect of a"Made in France"campaign.He is now trying to keep Amencan hands off Alstom,the French maker of TCV fast trains.He once posed cheerfully for a magazine,dressed in a striped Breton top and holding a Moulinex food-blender.Yet even French brands are not always home-made,as Benjamin Carle,a reporter,discovered filming a television documeniary about his efforts to live for a year using only products made in France.The result was comic-and sobering.Not only was it impossible to find some items,including a fridge and coffee.Mr Carle initially had to empty his flat of anyLhing that did not meet the test of 50%of its value being made in France.Out went the bicycle,computer,guitar,most of the furnilure,beer.clothes,toothbrush and more.The share of his stuff that qualified as French-made?Just 4.5%.

We can conclude from the last paragraph that______

Text l With polished stone floors and a plate-glass roof,a shining multi-storey shopping mall has just opened beside a motorway north of Paris.Named Qwartz,and costing 300m,it houses 165 shops and what developers call"eating concepts".Two other American-style shopping malls opened in the greater Paris region last year,and a third,So Ouest,in 2012.A country that prides iiself on fashion designer boutiques and aflisanal shops seernq to be turning into one of mall rats.Partly ihis is just catching up.Until recently,strict planning rules stopped big out of-town shopping centres around the French capilal.Most malls that existed,such as V61izy 2 or Rosny 2,dated from the 1970s,when rive new towns were built in the Paris suburbs.But a new relaxed attitude has now let more modem projects go ahead.It also points to two features of French society that escape the gaze of historic Paris.One is most shoppers'suburban way of life.Only 2.2m people live in the capital itself.Yet the greater Paris region,excluding the city,counts over four times more inhabitanLs,many in small towns and car dependent suburbs.The new malls,ringed by car parks,are handy,even aUuring.Fully 62%of the French told one poll that malls were cheir favourite places to shop,ahead of the high street or traditiOPal department stores.The other trend is the global taste of consumers.Besides a huge French hypermarket,Qwartz's big puU is Primark,an Irish cheap-fashion retailer,and Marks&Spencer,a British chain.Jusc down the road,So Ouest boasts Hollister,an American surfwear brand,Starbucks,an American coffee house,and foreign fashion chains such as H&M ancl Zara.In today's temples of consumption,global is a La mode.This is not quite the France favoured by Amaud Montebourg,the industry minister and architect of a"Made in France"campaign.He is now trying to keep Amencan hands off Alstom,the French maker of TCV fast trains.He once posed cheerfully for a magazine,dressed in a striped Breton top and holding a Moulinex food-blender.Yet even French brands are not always home-made,as Benjamin Carle,a reporter,discovered filming a television documeniary about his efforts to live for a year using only products made in France.The result was comic-and sobering.Not only was it impossible to find some items,including a fridge and coffee.Mr Carle initially had to empty his flat of anyLhing that did not meet the test of 50%of its value being made in France.Out went the bicycle,computer,guitar,most of the furnilure,beer.clothes,toothbrush and more.The share of his stuff that qualified as French-made?Just 4.5%.

According to Paragraph l,France is proud of its____

Retrofitting houses to use less energy should be a no-brainer for homeowners.1 time,money spent on ways to reduce heat loss from drauShty houses should produce a 2 return in lower fuel bills.In practice,many are cauLious.Some improvements,such as solid-wall insulation and solar panels,can take over 25 years to 3 their initial cost.Few owners are willing to wait that long:by then many are likely to have.4 and moved on.Several governments have started finance schemes designed t0 5 this problem.Since 2008 PACE programmes have offered American homeowners loans to 6.improvements,repaid through higher local taxes on the property,7 it belongs to.In Brit.ain,Lhe Green Deal offers loans over a 25-year period,with repayments added to energy bills.Countnes including France and Canada have similar 8.In theory,these schemes should boost investment in common energy-saving measures,such as extra insulation and new boilers,9 the first owner does not have to pay all the costs in advance.But enrolment rates have 10,according to Sean Kidney at the Climate Bonds Initiative,a thinktank.In Britain,just 1%of those assessed for the Creen Deal have signed up.In Berkeley,California,home of the first PACE scheme,the 11 rate is similarly low.Homeowners are 12 chiefly because the interest raLes on the loans look high.The Green Deal charges 7%;some PACE schemes a hefty 8%.As these rates are fixed for decades,they will 13 look unattractive when（as now）short-term interest rates are low.Many people als0 14 they will save enough on their energy biUs to cover the repayments.For instance,15 in Britain that installing loft insulation can cut energy bills by 20%have been dented by a government study that found it 16 gas consumption by only l.7%on average.Others fear that green loans may reduce the value of their home.In America,firms that undewrite mortgages are 17 PACE loans.Green loans have not been a failure everywhere.Around 250,000 households in Germany 18 for them each year.They do so 19 they need pay only 1%interest on them each yeu,thanks to an annual public subsidy of 1.5 billion.Whether that is a（an）20 use of taxpayers'money is another question.18选？

Text 2 Britain's flexible labour market was a boon during the economic slump,helping keep joblessness down and then,when the recovery began,allowing employment to rise.Yet one of its bendier bits is causing politicians to fret.Ed Miliband,the leader of the Labour Party,has promised a crackdown on"zero-hours contracts"if he wins the next election.The government has launched a con8ultation.Zero-hours contracts allow finns to employ workers for as few or as many hours as they need,with no prior notice.In theory,at least,people can refuse work.Fully l.4m jobs were based on these contracts in January 2014,according to the Office for National Statistics.That is just 4%of the total,but the share rises to a quarter in the hospitality business.The contracts are useful for finns with unstable pattems of demand,such as hotels and restauranLs.Ihey have also helped firms to expand during the recovery-allowing them to test new business lines before hiring permanem stafir,who would be more costly to make redundani if things went wrong.Flexibility suits some workers,too.According to one survey,47%of those employed on zerohours conUacts were content to have no nunimum contracted hours.Many of these workers are in full-time education.The ability to tum down work is important to students,who want to revise at this time of year.Pensioners keen for a liLtle extra income can often live with the uncertainty of not having guaranteed hours.Yet that leaves more than a quarter of workers on zero-hours contracts who say they are unhappy wirh their condirions.Some of this is cyclical.During recessions,a dearth of permanent positions forces people into jobs with no contracted hours even if they do not want them.Underemployment is pfuticularly prevalent among these workers,35%of whom would like more hours compared with 12qo in offier jobs.As the economy recovers,many should be able to renegotiate their contracts or find permanent jobs.But the recovery will not cause unwanted zero-hours contracts to disappear.Some workers will never have much negoLiating power:they are constrained by geography,family commitments and lack of competition for their skills among a small number of big employers.Zero-hours contracts make it easier for employers to abuse their labour-market power.Some use them to avoid statutory obligations such as sick and matenuty pay.Workers are penalised for not being available when requested.And some contracts contain exclusivity clauses which prevent workers from taking additional jobs.These can harm other employers as well as workers,and actually reduce labour market flexibility.That,at least,is worth doing away with.

Who may not be satisfied wiLh zero-hours contracts?

Text 2 Britain's flexible labour market was a boon during the economic slump,helping keep joblessness down and then,when the recovery began,allowing employment to rise.Yet one of its bendier bits is causing politicians to fret.Ed Miliband,the leader of the Labour Party,has promised a crackdown on"zero-hours contracts"if he wins the next election.The government has launched a con8ultation.Zero-hours contracts allow finns to employ workers for as few or as many hours as they need,with no prior notice.In theory,at least,people can refuse work.Fully l.4m jobs were based on these contracts in January 2014,according to the Office for National Statistics.That is just 4%of the total,but the share rises to a quarter in the hospitality business.The contracts are useful for finns with unstable pattems of demand,such as hotels and restauranLs.Ihey have also helped firms to expand during the recovery-allowing them to test new business lines before hiring permanem stafir,who would be more costly to make redundani if things went wrong.Flexibility suits some workers,too.According to one survey,47%of those employed on zerohours conUacts were content to have no nunimum contracted hours.Many of these workers are in full-time education.The ability to tum down work is important to students,who want to revise at this time of year.Pensioners keen for a liLtle extra income can often live with the uncertainty of not having guaranteed hours.Yet that leaves more than a quarter of workers on zero-hours contracts who say they are unhappy wirh their condirions.Some of this is cyclical.During recessions,a dearth of permanent positions forces people into jobs with no contracted hours even if they do not want them.Underemployment is pfuticularly prevalent among these workers,35%of whom would like more hours compared with 12qo in offier jobs.As the economy recovers,many should be able to renegotiate their contracts or find permanent jobs.But the recovery will not cause unwanted zero-hours contracts to disappear.Some workers will never have much negoLiating power:they are constrained by geography,family commitments and lack of competition for their skills among a small number of big employers.Zero-hours contracts make it easier for employers to abuse their labour-market power.Some use them to avoid statutory obligations such as sick and matenuty pay.Workers are penalised for not being available when requested.And some contracts contain exclusivity clauses which prevent workers from taking additional jobs.These can harm other employers as well as workers,and actually reduce labour market flexibility.That,at least,is worth doing away with.

Zero-hours contracts may allow employers to_____

Text l With polished stone floors and a plate-glass roof,a shining multi-storey shopping mall has just opened beside a motorway north of Paris.Named Qwartz,and costing 300m,it houses 165 shops and what developers call"eating concepts".Two other American-style shopping malls opened in the greater Paris region last year,and a third,So Ouest,in 2012.A country that prides iiself on fashion designer boutiques and aflisanal shops seernq to be turning into one of mall rats.Partly ihis is just catching up.Until recently,strict planning rules stopped big out of-town shopping centres around the French capilal.Most malls that existed,such as V61izy 2 or Rosny 2,dated from the 1970s,when rive new towns were built in the Paris suburbs.But a new relaxed attitude has now let more modem projects go ahead.It also points to two features of French society that escape the gaze of historic Paris.One is most shoppers'suburban way of life.Only 2.2m people live in the capital itself.Yet the greater Paris region,excluding the city,counts over four times more inhabitanLs,many in small towns and car dependent suburbs.The new malls,ringed by car parks,are handy,even aUuring.Fully 62%of the French told one poll that malls were cheir favourite places to shop,ahead of the high street or traditiOPal department stores.The other trend is the global taste of consumers.Besides a huge French hypermarket,Qwartz's big puU is Primark,an Irish cheap-fashion retailer,and Marks&Spencer,a British chain.Jusc down the road,So Ouest boasts Hollister,an American surfwear brand,Starbucks,an American coffee house,and foreign fashion chains such as H&M ancl Zara.In today's temples of consumption,global is a La mode.This is not quite the France favoured by Amaud Montebourg,the industry minister and architect of a"Made in France"campaign.He is now trying to keep Amencan hands off Alstom,the French maker of TCV fast trains.He once posed cheerfully for a magazine,dressed in a striped Breton top and holding a Moulinex food-blender.Yet even French brands are not always home-made,as Benjamin Carle,a reporter,discovered filming a television documeniary about his efforts to live for a year using only products made in France.The result was comic-and sobering.Not only was it impossible to find some items,including a fridge and coffee.Mr Carle initially had to empty his flat of anyLhing that did not meet the test of 50%of its value being made in France.Out went the bicycle,computer,guitar,most of the furnilure,beer.clothes,toothbrush and more.The share of his stuff that qualified as French-made?Just 4.5%.

The word"la mode"（Line 5,Para.4）most probably means_____

Text 2 Britain's flexible labour market was a boon during the economic slump,helping keep joblessness down and then,when the recovery began,allowing employment to rise.Yet one of its bendier bits is causing politicians to fret.Ed Miliband,the leader of the Labour Party,has promised a crackdown on"zero-hours contracts"if he wins the next election.The government has launched a con8ultation.Zero-hours contracts allow finns to employ workers for as few or as many hours as they need,with no prior notice.In theory,at least,people can refuse work.Fully l.4m jobs were based on these contracts in January 2014,according to the Office for National Statistics.That is just 4%of the total,but the share rises to a quarter in the hospitality business.The contracts are useful for finns with unstable pattems of demand,such as hotels and restauranLs.Ihey have also helped firms to expand during the recovery-allowing them to test new business lines before hiring permanem stafir,who would be more costly to make redundani if things went wrong.Flexibility suits some workers,too.According to one survey,47%of those employed on zerohours conUacts were content to have no nunimum contracted hours.Many of these workers are in full-time education.The ability to tum down work is important to students,who want to revise at this time of year.Pensioners keen for a liLtle extra income can often live with the uncertainty of not having guaranteed hours.Yet that leaves more than a quarter of workers on zero-hours contracts who say they are unhappy wirh their condirions.Some of this is cyclical.During recessions,a dearth of permanent positions forces people into jobs with no contracted hours even if they do not want them.Underemployment is pfuticularly prevalent among these workers,35%of whom would like more hours compared with 12qo in offier jobs.As the economy recovers,many should be able to renegotiate their contracts or find permanent jobs.But the recovery will not cause unwanted zero-hours contracts to disappear.Some workers will never have much negoLiating power:they are constrained by geography,family commitments and lack of competition for their skills among a small number of big employers.Zero-hours contracts make it easier for employers to abuse their labour-market power.Some use them to avoid statutory obligations such as sick and matenuty pay.Workers are penalised for not being available when requested.And some contracts contain exclusivity clauses which prevent workers from taking additional jobs.These can harm other employers as well as workers,and actually reduce labour market flexibility.That,at least,is worth doing away with.

Zero-hours contracts are charactenzed by their_____

Text 2 Britain's flexible labour market was a boon during the economic slump,helping keep joblessness down and then,when the recovery began,allowing employment to rise.Yet one of its bendier bits is causing politicians to fret.Ed Miliband,the leader of the Labour Party,has promised a crackdown on"zero-hours contracts"if he wins the next election.The government has launched a con8ultation.Zero-hours contracts allow finns to employ workers for as few or as many hours as they need,with no prior notice.In theory,at least,people can refuse work.Fully l.4m jobs were based on these contracts in January 2014,according to the Office for National Statistics.That is just 4%of the total,but the share rises to a quarter in the hospitality business.The contracts are useful for finns with unstable pattems of demand,such as hotels and restauranLs.Ihey have also helped firms to expand during the recovery-allowing them to test new business lines before hiring permanem stafir,who would be more costly to make redundani if things went wrong.Flexibility suits some workers,too.According to one survey,47%of those employed on zerohours conUacts were content to have no nunimum contracted hours.Many of these workers are in full-time education.The ability to tum down work is important to students,who want to revise at this time of year.Pensioners keen for a liLtle extra income can often live with the uncertainty of not having guaranteed hours.Yet that leaves more than a quarter of workers on zero-hours contracts who say they are unhappy wirh their condirions.Some of this is cyclical.During recessions,a dearth of permanent positions forces people into jobs with no contracted hours even if they do not want them.Underemployment is pfuticularly prevalent among these workers,35%of whom would like more hours compared with 12qo in offier jobs.As the economy recovers,many should be able to renegotiate their contracts or find permanent jobs.But the recovery will not cause unwanted zero-hours contracts to disappear.Some workers will never have much negoLiating power:they are constrained by geography,family commitments and lack of competition for their skills among a small number of big employers.Zero-hours contracts make it easier for employers to abuse their labour-market power.Some use them to avoid statutory obligations such as sick and matenuty pay.Workers are penalised for not being available when requested.And some contracts contain exclusivity clauses which prevent workers from taking additional jobs.These can harm other employers as well as workers,and actually reduce labour market flexibility.That,at least,is worth doing away with.

The text mainly focuses on zero-hours contracts_____

Text 3 West London,Friday night,9 pm.In the Redemption bar,music hums and candles flicker.A barman shakes cocktails under a neon sign.But the noisy drinking often associated with British pubs at the weekend is absent.Although the cocorita is served,it contains no alcohol.Redemption is one of a small but growing number of drinkeries that serve no liquor.Worries about drinking are on the rise.Hospitals complain that alcohol-related admissions are soaring;some police chiefs have called for new powers to tackle disorderly drunks.On February 4th the Home Office announced a new plan that ought to stop retailers from selling alcoholic drinks below cost-something they occasionally do to attract shoppers.This,said Norman Baker,the Liberal Democrat,would"stop the worst examples of very cheap and harmful drink".Yet Britain is in many ways becoming more absterruous.In 2001 the average household consumed 1.5 litres of alcoholic drinks a week;by 2011,the figure had fallen t0 1.I litres.The young in particular seem to be giving up boozing:over the same period,the number of young men drinking heavily at least once a week feU from 37%t0 22%;women became less sozzled,too.Dry bars benefit from this fad:Redemption's customers doubled between December and January.Abstemious bars have also opened in Liverpool and Nottingham.Unlike many caf6s,they stay open late.They simulate hars in other ways,with live music,comedy acts and films to pull in customers.When the lights go down and the DJ plays at Sobar,which opened in Nottingham in January,it looks like any city bar,hopes Alex Gillmore,the manager.Redemption misses the huge profits made on alcohol,but temperance brings its own benefits.Business remains sleady throughout the week rather than spiking at the weekend,says Catherine Salway,its founder.Sobar is linked to a do-gooding drug and alcohol charity.But ordinary bars are becoming a little drier,too,out of business sense rather than temperance principle.Pubs can make almost as much selling food as drink-and more are serving it.Both in pubs and at home,less boozy drinks are beconung popular.Total sales of beer by volume dropped slightly in the year to January,but those of the weaker kinds jumped 32%,according to a market-research firm.Sales of"adult"sparkling soft drinks are grwing too.Perhaps the caf6-culture British politicians have so long yearned for is at last emerging.

lt can he leamed from Paragraph 3 that______

Text 3 West London,Friday night,9 pm.In the Redemption bar,music hums and candles flicker.A barman shakes cocktails under a neon sign.But the noisy drinking often associated with British pubs at the weekend is absent.Although the cocorita is served,it contains no alcohol.Redemption is one of a small but growing number of drinkeries that serve no liquor.Worries about drinking are on the rise.Hospitals complain that alcohol-related admissions are soaring;some police chiefs have called for new powers to tackle disorderly drunks.On February 4th the Home Office announced a new plan that ought to stop retailers from selling alcoholic drinks below cost-something they occasionally do to attract shoppers.This,said Norman Baker,the Liberal Democrat,would"stop the worst examples of very cheap and harmful drink".Yet Britain is in many ways becoming more absterruous.In 2001 the average household consumed 1.5 litres of alcoholic drinks a week;by 2011,the figure had fallen t0 1.I litres.The young in particular seem to be giving up boozing:over the same period,the number of young men drinking heavily at least once a week feU from 37%t0 22%;women became less sozzled,too.Dry bars benefit from this fad:Redemption's customers doubled between December and January.Abstemious bars have also opened in Liverpool and Nottingham.Unlike many caf6s,they stay open late.They simulate hars in other ways,with live music,comedy acts and films to pull in customers.When the lights go down and the DJ plays at Sobar,which opened in Nottingham in January,it looks like any city bar,hopes Alex Gillmore,the manager.Redemption misses the huge profits made on alcohol,but temperance brings its own benefits.Business remains sleady throughout the week rather than spiking at the weekend,says Catherine Salway,its founder.Sobar is linked to a do-gooding drug and alcohol charity.But ordinary bars are becoming a little drier,too,out of business sense rather than temperance principle.Pubs can make almost as much selling food as drink-and more are serving it.Both in pubs and at home,less boozy drinks are beconung popular.Total sales of beer by volume dropped slightly in the year to January,but those of the weaker kinds jumped 32%,according to a market-research firm.Sales of"adult"sparkling soft drinks are grwing too.Perhaps the caf6-culture British politicians have so long yearned for is at last emerging.

Accoding to Paragraph 4,dry bars mainly live on______

Text 3 West London,Friday night,9 pm.In the Redemption bar,music hums and candles flicker.A barman shakes cocktails under a neon sign.But the noisy drinking often associated with British pubs at the weekend is absent.Although the cocorita is served,it contains no alcohol.Redemption is one of a small but growing number of drinkeries that serve no liquor.Worries about drinking are on the rise.Hospitals complain that alcohol-related admissions are soaring;some police chiefs have called for new powers to tackle disorderly drunks.On February 4th the Home Office announced a new plan that ought to stop retailers from selling alcoholic drinks below cost-something they occasionally do to attract shoppers.This,said Norman Baker,the Liberal Democrat,would"stop the worst examples of very cheap and harmful drink".Yet Britain is in many ways becoming more absterruous.In 2001 the average household consumed 1.5 litres of alcoholic drinks a week;by 2011,the figure had fallen t0 1.I litres.The young in particular seem to be giving up boozing:over the same period,the number of young men drinking heavily at least once a week feU from 37%t0 22%;women became less sozzled,too.Dry bars benefit from this fad:Redemption's customers doubled between December and January.Abstemious bars have also opened in Liverpool and Nottingham.Unlike many caf6s,they stay open late.They simulate hars in other ways,with live music,comedy acts and films to pull in customers.When the lights go down and the DJ plays at Sobar,which opened in Nottingham in January,it looks like any city bar,hopes Alex Gillmore,the manager.Redemption misses the huge profits made on alcohol,but temperance brings its own benefits.Business remains sleady throughout the week rather than spiking at the weekend,says Catherine Salway,its founder.Sobar is linked to a do-gooding drug and alcohol charity.But ordinary bars are becoming a little drier,too,out of business sense rather than temperance principle.Pubs can make almost as much selling food as drink-and more are serving it.Both in pubs and at home,less boozy drinks are beconung popular.Total sales of beer by volume dropped slightly in the year to January,but those of the weaker kinds jumped 32%,according to a market-research firm.Sales of"adult"sparkling soft drinks are grwing too.Perhaps the caf6-culture British politicians have so long yearned for is at last emerging.

Norman Baker believed that the new plan would_____

Text 3 West London,Friday night,9 pm.In the Redemption bar,music hums and candles flicker.A barman shakes cocktails under a neon sign.But the noisy drinking often associated with British pubs at the weekend is absent.Although the cocorita is served,it contains no alcohol.Redemption is one of a small but growing number of drinkeries that serve no liquor.Worries about drinking are on the rise.Hospitals complain that alcohol-related admissions are soaring;some police chiefs have called for new powers to tackle disorderly drunks.On February 4th the Home Office announced a new plan that ought to stop retailers from selling alcoholic drinks below cost-something they occasionally do to attract shoppers.This,said Norman Baker,the Liberal Democrat,would"stop the worst examples of very cheap and harmful drink".Yet Britain is in many ways becoming more absterruous.In 2001 the average household consumed 1.5 litres of alcoholic drinks a week;by 2011,the figure had fallen t0 1.I litres.The young in particular seem to be giving up boozing:over the same period,the number of young men drinking heavily at least once a week feU from 37%t0 22%;women became less sozzled,too.Dry bars benefit from this fad:Redemption's customers doubled between December and January.Abstemious bars have also opened in Liverpool and Nottingham.Unlike many caf6s,they stay open late.They simulate hars in other ways,with live music,comedy acts and films to pull in customers.When the lights go down and the DJ plays at Sobar,which opened in Nottingham in January,it looks like any city bar,hopes Alex Gillmore,the manager.Redemption misses the huge profits made on alcohol,but temperance brings its own benefits.Business remains sleady throughout the week rather than spiking at the weekend,says Catherine Salway,its founder.Sobar is linked to a do-gooding drug and alcohol charity.But ordinary bars are becoming a little drier,too,out of business sense rather than temperance principle.Pubs can make almost as much selling food as drink-and more are serving it.Both in pubs and at home,less boozy drinks are beconung popular.Total sales of beer by volume dropped slightly in the year to January,but those of the weaker kinds jumped 32%,according to a market-research firm.Sales of"adult"sparkling soft drinks are grwing too.Perhaps the caf6-culture British politicians have so long yearned for is at last emerging.

British politiciuns'attitude towards drinking may be____.

Text 3 West London,Friday night,9 pm.In the Redemption bar,music hums and candles flicker.A barman shakes cocktails under a neon sign.But the noisy drinking often associated with British pubs at the weekend is absent.Although the cocorita is served,it contains no alcohol.Redemption is one of a small but growing number of drinkeries that serve no liquor.Worries about drinking are on the rise.Hospitals complain that alcohol-related admissions are soaring;some police chiefs have called for new powers to tackle disorderly drunks.On February 4th the Home Office announced a new plan that ought to stop retailers from selling alcoholic drinks below cost-something they occasionally do to attract shoppers.This,said Norman Baker,the Liberal Democrat,would"stop the worst examples of very cheap and harmful drink".Yet Britain is in many ways becoming more absterruous.In 2001 the average household consumed 1.5 litres of alcoholic drinks a week;by 2011,the figure had fallen t0 1.I litres.The young in particular seem to be giving up boozing:over the same period,the number of young men drinking heavily at least once a week feU from 37%t0 22%;women became less sozzled,too.Dry bars benefit from this fad:Redemption's customers doubled between December and January.Abstemious bars have also opened in Liverpool and Nottingham.Unlike many caf6s,they stay open late.They simulate hars in other ways,with live music,comedy acts and films to pull in customers.When the lights go down and the DJ plays at Sobar,which opened in Nottingham in January,it looks like any city bar,hopes Alex Gillmore,the manager.Redemption misses the huge profits made on alcohol,but temperance brings its own benefits.Business remains sleady throughout the week rather than spiking at the weekend,says Catherine Salway,its founder.Sobar is linked to a do-gooding drug and alcohol charity.But ordinary bars are becoming a little drier,too,out of business sense rather than temperance principle.Pubs can make almost as much selling food as drink-and more are serving it.Both in pubs and at home,less boozy drinks are beconung popular.Total sales of beer by volume dropped slightly in the year to January,but those of the weaker kinds jumped 32%,according to a market-research firm.Sales of"adult"sparkling soft drinks are grwing too.Perhaps the caf6-culture British politicians have so long yearned for is at last emerging.

We can learn from the text that Redempiion is_____

The last time she was recruiting for her export-sales team,Sarah Grain hired a Lithuanian who speaks Russian,Polish and German.Her two previous hires for Eriez Magnetics,which makes in-dustrial equipment in South Wales,were an Italian who also speaks French,and a Venezuelan who speaks Spanish and Portuguese.All of them speak fluent English."There were no British applicants who had the requisite language skills,"she says.Ms Grain's conclusion is not unusual for a British company.In 2012 a European Commission survey tested the foreign-language proficiency of 54,000 students aged 14 and 15,in 14 nations.Sweden came top,with 82qo of pupils reaching an"independent"or"advanced independent"standard.The average for all 14 states was 42%.England came bottom,with just 9%.Part of the explanation is that many people's second language is English,while many Britons continue to believe that,as native speakers,they do not need to bother with foreign languages.They may be right-in tenns of commurucation.But it means that,not only are they missing out on much cultural interaction,they may also be harming their own job prospects.they have not been helped by the educational policies of successive govemments.In 2004 Tony Blair's hbour govemment abolished the requirement to learn a language after the age of 14,causing the numbers taking a language CCSE exam at 16 to fall by half in state schools over the next seven years.Concerned about this rapid decline,the coalition govemment brought in a new performance indicator called the English Baccalaureate,or EBacc,in 2011.A modern language was one of its five core disciplines.Language teachers-an embattled breed-rejoiced.The number of students ente-ring a GCSE language exam in 2013,the first year the changes took effect,rose by 20%.Now,however,those gains could be lost,as the govemment has seemingly loosened the re-quirement.From 2016,under a new initiative called Progress 8,it has extended the number of core subjects to eight,appearing to make learning a language voluntary.This has pleased some teachers,who felt the EBacc was too narrow,but linguists are shocking.The decline of languages at GCSE has inevitably had an effect higher up the academic food chain.Though the number of those studying languages to A Level will increase thanks to the GCSE cohort of 2013-2014,it is likely to fall back again.French and German are half as popular as they were 20 years ago.The number of universities offering language degrees has fallen,too:by 50%for Cerman and 40%for French since 1998.The number offering Spanish has also fallen.Degrees in other languages,such as Chinese and Arabic,are becoming more popular,but they are still rare.The economy and the labour market bear the consequences.In 2012 the British Chambers of Commerce found,in a survey of 8,000 BriLish companies,that 96%had no foreign-language speakers.First-lime exporters cited language as a barrier to entering intemational markets.Though Britain makes up 12%of the population of the EU,less than 5qo of EU civil servants in Brussels are British.Not enough Bricons can fulfil the language requirement of being able to work in French or Cerman.And even if monoglot Brits can get jobs at multinationals,claims Richard Hardie,non-executive chairman of the British arm of UBS,a bank,"the chances of getting to the top if you only have English are much lower than before".

Sarah Grain said that

The last time she was recruiting for her export-sales team,Sarah Grain hired a Lithuanian who speaks Russian,Polish and German.Her two previous hires for Eriez Magnetics,which makes in-dustrial equipment in South Wales,were an Italian who also speaks French,and a Venezuelan who speaks Spanish and Portuguese.All of them speak fluent English."There were no British applicants who had the requisite language skills,"she says.Ms Grain's conclusion is not unusual for a British company.In 2012 a European Commission survey tested the foreign-language proficiency of 54,000 students aged 14 and 15,in 14 nations.Sweden came top,with 82qo of pupils reaching an"independent"or"advanced independent"standard.The average for all 14 states was 42%.England came bottom,with just 9%.Part of the explanation is that many people's second language is English,while many Britons continue to believe that,as native speakers,they do not need to bother with foreign languages.They may be right-in tenns of commurucation.But it means that,not only are they missing out on much cultural interaction,they may also be harming their own job prospects.they have not been helped by the educational policies of successive govemments.In 2004 Tony Blair's hbour govemment abolished the requirement to learn a language after the age of 14,causing the numbers taking a language CCSE exam at 16 to fall by half in state schools over the next seven years.Concerned about this rapid decline,the coalition govemment brought in a new performance indicator called the English Baccalaureate,or EBacc,in 2011.A modern language was one of its five core disciplines.Language teachers-an embattled breed-rejoiced.The number of students ente-ring a GCSE language exam in 2013,the first year the changes took effect,rose by 20%.Now,however,those gains could be lost,as the govemment has seemingly loosened the re-quirement.From 2016,under a new initiative called Progress 8,it has extended the number of core subjects to eight,appearing to make learning a language voluntary.This has pleased some teachers,who felt the EBacc was too narrow,but linguists are shocking.The decline of languages at GCSE has inevitably had an effect higher up the academic food chain.Though the number of those studying languages to A Level will increase thanks to the GCSE cohort of 2013-2014,it is likely to fall back again.French and German are half as popular as they were 20 years ago.The number of universities offering language degrees has fallen,too:by 50%for Cerman and 40%for French since 1998.The number offering Spanish has also fallen.Degrees in other languages,such as Chinese and Arabic,are becoming more popular,but they are still rare.The economy and the labour market bear the consequences.In 2012 the British Chambers of Commerce found,in a survey of 8,000 BriLish companies,that 96%had no foreign-language speakers.First-lime exporters cited language as a barrier to entering intemational markets.Though Britain makes up 12%of the population of the EU,less than 5qo of EU civil servants in Brussels are British.Not enough Bricons can fulfil the language requirement of being able to work in French or Cerman.And even if monoglot Brits can get jobs at multinationals,claims Richard Hardie,non-executive chairman of the British arm of UBS,a bank,"the chances of getting to the top if you only have English are much lower than before".

European Commission showed that

The last time she was recruiting for her export-sales team,Sarah Grain hired a Lithuanian who speaks Russian,Polish and German.Her two previous hires for Eriez Magnetics,which makes in-dustrial equipment in South Wales,were an Italian who also speaks French,and a Venezuelan who speaks Spanish and Portuguese.All of them speak fluent English."There were no British applicants who had the requisite language skills,"she says.Ms Grain's conclusion is not unusual for a British company.In 2012 a European Commission survey tested the foreign-language proficiency of 54,000 students aged 14 and 15,in 14 nations.Sweden came top,with 82qo of pupils reaching an"independent"or"advanced independent"standard.The average for all 14 states was 42%.England came bottom,with just 9%.Part of the explanation is that many people's second language is English,while many Britons continue to believe that,as native speakers,they do not need to bother with foreign languages.They may be right-in tenns of commurucation.But it means that,not only are they missing out on much cultural interaction,they may also be harming their own job prospects.they have not been helped by the educational policies of successive govemments.In 2004 Tony Blair's hbour govemment abolished the requirement to learn a language after the age of 14,causing the numbers taking a language CCSE exam at 16 to fall by half in state schools over the next seven years.Concerned about this rapid decline,the coalition govemment brought in a new performance indicator called the English Baccalaureate,or EBacc,in 2011.A modern language was one of its five core disciplines.Language teachers-an embattled breed-rejoiced.The number of students ente-ring a GCSE language exam in 2013,the first year the changes took effect,rose by 20%.Now,however,those gains could be lost,as the govemment has seemingly loosened the re-quirement.From 2016,under a new initiative called Progress 8,it has extended the number of core subjects to eight,appearing to make learning a language voluntary.This has pleased some teachers,who felt the EBacc was too narrow,but linguists are shocking.The decline of languages at GCSE has inevitably had an effect higher up the academic food chain.Though the number of those studying languages to A Level will increase thanks to the GCSE cohort of 2013-2014,it is likely to fall back again.French and German are half as popular as they were 20 years ago.The number of universities offering language degrees has fallen,too:by 50%for Cerman and 40%for French since 1998.The number offering Spanish has also fallen.Degrees in other languages,such as Chinese and Arabic,are becoming more popular,but they are still rare.The economy and the labour market bear the consequences.In 2012 the British Chambers of Commerce found,in a survey of 8,000 BriLish companies,that 96%had no foreign-language speakers.First-lime exporters cited language as a barrier to entering intemational markets.Though Britain makes up 12%of the population of the EU,less than 5qo of EU civil servants in Brussels are British.Not enough Bricons can fulfil the language requirement of being able to work in French or Cerman.And even if monoglot Brits can get jobs at multinationals,claims Richard Hardie,non-executive chairman of the British arm of UBS,a bank,"the chances of getting to the top if you only have English are much lower than before".

Tony Blair held that

The last time she was recruiting for her export-sales team,Sarah Grain hired a Lithuanian who speaks Russian,Polish and German.Her two previous hires for Eriez Magnetics,which makes in-dustrial equipment in South Wales,were an Italian who also speaks French,and a Venezuelan who speaks Spanish and Portuguese.All of them speak fluent English."There were no British applicants who had the requisite language skills,"she says.Ms Grain's conclusion is not unusual for a British company.In 2012 a European Commission survey tested the foreign-language proficiency of 54,000 students aged 14 and 15,in 14 nations.Sweden came top,with 82qo of pupils reaching an"independent"or"advanced independent"standard.The average for all 14 states was 42%.England came bottom,with just 9%.Part of the explanation is that many people's second language is English,while many Britons continue to believe that,as native speakers,they do not need to bother with foreign languages.They may be right-in tenns of commurucation.But it means that,not only are they missing out on much cultural interaction,they may also be harming their own job prospects.they have not been helped by the educational policies of successive govemments.In 2004 Tony Blair's hbour govemment abolished the requirement to learn a language after the age of 14,causing the numbers taking a language CCSE exam at 16 to fall by half in state schools over the next seven years.Concerned about this rapid decline,the coalition govemment brought in a new performance indicator called the English Baccalaureate,or EBacc,in 2011.A modern language was one of its five core disciplines.Language teachers-an embattled breed-rejoiced.The number of students ente-ring a GCSE language exam in 2013,the first year the changes took effect,rose by 20%.Now,however,those gains could be lost,as the govemment has seemingly loosened the re-quirement.From 2016,under a new initiative called Progress 8,it has extended the number of core subjects to eight,appearing to make learning a language voluntary.This has pleased some teachers,who felt the EBacc was too narrow,but linguists are shocking.The decline of languages at GCSE has inevitably had an effect higher up the academic food chain.Though the number of those studying languages to A Level will increase thanks to the GCSE cohort of 2013-2014,it is likely to fall back again.French and German are half as popular as they were 20 years ago.The number of universities offering language degrees has fallen,too:by 50%for Cerman and 40%for French since 1998.The number offering Spanish has also fallen.Degrees in other languages,such as Chinese and Arabic,are becoming more popular,but they are still rare.The economy and the labour market bear the consequences.In 2012 the British Chambers of Commerce found,in a survey of 8,000 BriLish companies,that 96%had no foreign-language speakers.First-lime exporters cited language as a barrier to entering intemational markets.Though Britain makes up 12%of the population of the EU,less than 5qo of EU civil servants in Brussels are British.Not enough Bricons can fulfil the language requirement of being able to work in French or Cerman.And even if monoglot Brits can get jobs at multinationals,claims Richard Hardie,non-executive chairman of the British arm of UBS,a bank,"the chances of getting to the top if you only have English are much lower than before".

British Chambers of Commerce found that

The last time she was recruiting for her export-sales team,Sarah Grain hired a Lithuanian who speaks Russian,Polish and German.Her two previous hires for Eriez Magnetics,which makes in-dustrial equipment in South Wales,were an Italian who also speaks French,and a Venezuelan who speaks Spanish and Portuguese.All of them speak fluent English."There were no British applicants who had the requisite language skills,"she says.Ms Grain's conclusion is not unusual for a British company.In 2012 a European Commission survey tested the foreign-language proficiency of 54,000 students aged 14 and 15,in 14 nations.Sweden came top,with 82qo of pupils reaching an"independent"or"advanced independent"standard.The average for all 14 states was 42%.England came bottom,with just 9%.Part of the explanation is that many people's second language is English,while many Britons continue to believe that,as native speakers,they do not need to bother with foreign languages.They may be right-in tenns of commurucation.But it means that,not only are they missing out on much cultural interaction,they may also be harming their own job prospects.they have not been helped by the educational policies of successive govemments.In 2004 Tony Blair's hbour govemment abolished the requirement to learn a language after the age of 14,causing the numbers taking a language CCSE exam at 16 to fall by half in state schools over the next seven years.Concerned about this rapid decline,the coalition govemment brought in a new performance indicator called the English Baccalaureate,or EBacc,in 2011.A modern language was one of its five core disciplines.Language teachers-an embattled breed-rejoiced.The number of students ente-ring a GCSE language exam in 2013,the first year the changes took effect,rose by 20%.Now,however,those gains could be lost,as the govemment has seemingly loosened the re-quirement.From 2016,under a new initiative called Progress 8,it has extended the number of core subjects to eight,appearing to make learning a language voluntary.This has pleased some teachers,who felt the EBacc was too narrow,but linguists are shocking.The decline of languages at GCSE has inevitably had an effect higher up the academic food chain.Though the number of those studying languages to A Level will increase thanks to the GCSE cohort of 2013-2014,it is likely to fall back again.French and German are half as popular as they were 20 years ago.The number of universities offering language degrees has fallen,too:by 50%for Cerman and 40%for French since 1998.The number offering Spanish has also fallen.Degrees in other languages,such as Chinese and Arabic,are becoming more popular,but they are still rare.The economy and the labour market bear the consequences.In 2012 the British Chambers of Commerce found,in a survey of 8,000 BriLish companies,that 96%had no foreign-language speakers.First-lime exporters cited language as a barrier to entering intemational markets.Though Britain makes up 12%of the population of the EU,less than 5qo of EU civil servants in Brussels are British.Not enough Bricons can fulfil the language requirement of being able to work in French or Cerman.And even if monoglot Brits can get jobs at multinationals,claims Richard Hardie,non-executive chairman of the British arm of UBS,a bank,"the chances of getting to the top if you only have English are much lower than before".

Richard Hardie claimed that