With the festive¹ season approaching, it is the kind of news likely to leave flustered² housewives shaking their heads in disbelief.

在圣诞节临近之际，这种新闻可能会让忙乱的家庭主妇们摇头表示难以置信。

A third of men, it is reckoned（测算，估计） , won’t lift a finger in the kitchen this Christmas.

But as fed up women across the land cry ‘Only a third?’, it appears men have come up with some pretty good excuses for their idleness（懒惰，闲散） at Christmas.

A lack of confidence, previous failures and complicated recipes are the main reasons men say don’t want to get involved on December 25.

Many others won’t go near the kitchen because they believe their other half is happy to take care of everything.

The survey, by Red Tractor beef and lamb, also revealed that one in two women would like more help at Christmas.

A spokesman said: ‘We all know that women do a lot of work at Christmas, but men shouldn’t make up excuses for not helping³ out or be afraid of the kitchen.

‘They shouldn’t let previous mistakes put them off having a go at recipes.’

A third of men say they have no confidence when it comes to Christmas cooking, with a fifth saying they feel lost in the kitchen. One in six said previous criticism of his efforts had put him off attempting to cook festive foods ever again.

Almost one fifth of men say they do not cook at all.

Recent Hull⁴ University research into gender⁵ differences in the kitchen, found that men’s lack of help is not down to laziness, but an inherent（固有的，内在的） lack of confidence built up from an early age.

A university spokesman said: ‘It’s not that men don’t want to cook, it’s just that they need the encouragement.’