Peter Rhodes on prison riots, peace talks and the enduring power of simplicity

I am reminded of a grave I once saw in a Lake District cemetery. Surrounded by stones bearing wordy carved epitaphs extolling every detail of the lives of those who had died, this stone was strikingly simple with just the person's name and only one other word: “Nurse.” It says so much.

Great questions of our time. Is it more inspiring to have a prime minister who believes trans women are women, or a prime minister who believes trans women are not women, but only after the Supreme Court tells him so? Any thoughts?

The Home Office has announced a trial of Taser stun guns for some prison officers, following a savage attack on three officers in a high-security jail by a convicted terrorist. 

I am sure that prison officers who are demanding Tasers to protect themselves know their stuff but isn't there an obvious danger? 

As a rule, thanks to good nourishing meals and regular access to the prison gym, some inmates are ferociously fit, muscular and powerful. It's been some years since I last entered a prison but I couldn't help noticing that the average inmate was younger, leaner and stronger than the average officer. 

In the madness of a riot, if prison officers were armed with Tasers, the prisoners would surely try to steal them and turn them on the warders. In this smart age with codes and fingerprint technology, there must surely be a non-lethal stun device that can be fired only by the authorised user. If the boffins aren't working on it, they should be.

The Russian president Vladimir Putin has, for the first time, proposed direct peace talks with Ukraine's President Zelensky. So what will this mean - two leaders on the same phone line, in the same building or the same room? If a face-to-face meeting is seriously on the cards, I can only offer the Ukrainian leader this advice: 1) Keep your temper, 2) Stay away from the windows, 3) Don't drink the tea.