It is always entertaining to hear the grandest dames of the Conservative party delving into the realms of contemporary culture. Baroness Lynda Chalker - the Tory's Minister for Overseas Development between 1989 and 1997 - did just that at the annual dinner of the Association of Women Solicitors last week in London. Her opening gambit was to make a reference to the 1986 recording by Annie Lennox and Aretha Franklin of 'Sisters Are Doin' it for Themselves'. So far, so typical. Baroness Chalker then reassured the audience that while she was all for progressive women's rights, she drew the line at certain levels of protest - 'I wasn't one of those bra burners,' she confirmed, which is comforting to know. She then turned to more serious subjects, such as the government's recently released Africa Commission report. Baroness Chalker hit the developed countries hard over corruption: 'We have to stop the people who give the bribes as well as those who accept them. Women are particularly good at finding out what is happening, and we have to have systems in place to protect them when they ring the alarm bells.' Right on, sister