If we give them this concession, it will be the thin end of the wedge.

He is in the habit of <u><em>chewing the cuds</em></u>.

His boss was always <u><em>breathing down his neck</em></u>.

To throw dust in one's eyes

A chip off the old block

At Christmas, even the elderly fathers <u><em>paint the town red</em></u>.

To get into a scrape

<u><em>To all intent and purposes</em></u> he is a good man.

A sop to cerberus