DAUGHTER’S LAZY LUMP BOYFRIEND

As a mum-of-three, I’m very proud that all my kids have a great work ethic. My eldest left school at 18 and went straight into a job, while the next in age went to university to study law. When my youngest daughter, 18, got a serious boyfriend I was thrilled, she seemed so happy. But, at 23, he has no job (or ambition!) and seems very lazy. I can see it’s draining her and she could do SO much better. She won’t admit it, but he distracts her from her studies… and dulls her fabulous shine. She’d hate me for getting involved, but can I really just sit by and watch this? Sue, Inverness

You look at your daughter’s bloke and see a lazy lump going nowhere fast. The question is, when she looks at him, what does she see? She may find him irresistibly hot. Could it be she thinks he’s relaxing company, he doesn’t make demands on her and she feels she can be herself with him? It’s impossible to know what couples see in one another. Splitting your daughter and her man up, even with her best interests at heart, is going to be tough, if she really is madly in love. But if your mother’s intuition is spot on, and she’s beginning to be bored by his lack of drive, you might manage to plant the seed of doubt in her head. Ask her where she sees herself in five years. Then, casually ask her where she thinks her boyfriend will be at that point. Sit back… and wait for the penny to drop.