I got to the root of the problem !!! Horray!!!! when the car was left for a while with the battery turned off with a knob type switch connected to the battery terminal it struggled to turn over when I turned the switch on. Last week the same problem, I put the charger on and it made no difference, this made me suspicious of the battery leads. I checked the connections and found the earth lead that connects to the gearbox casing corroded. I removed the lead , cleaned the gearbox with a wire brush and replaced the lead with a new one I think intended for a diesel as it is a lot heavier . When all was connected the car started with no problem , on the button like it should. Thanks for all the advise. David. 
Dave,
Pleased you've got it sorted, I should have spotted that as it was a common failing on Dedra and would often throw up all sort of unrelated electrical problems that didn't seem to have a common cause, but changing the battery lead cured them all.
Funny enough I was having a look at a friends Fulvia that is just back on the road after a lot of bodywork over the last 5 years, he was complaining about the starter motor turning over slowly, when I had a look I found the power lead from the battery to the starter was badly corroded with only about a dozen strands of copper wire left, even cutting the outer back still revealed corrosion, but it has cleaned up enough until he can replace it.
Brian
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