Thank you for your reply Ian, Judy and Peter. That is very encouraging that an SM would cope well in higher latitudes (provided adequate heating was on hand). I know all too well the central heating powers of a fine whisky, single malt or blended:) 

As part of my research I was looking at steel hull boats for potential higher latitude sailing, but there were too many things about steel boats that I felt wouldn't provide the level of comfort that an SM could. As it is I regard the SM s close to perfect a boat as you can get ( for my needs anyway), however it was the durability of the boat that I was concerned with sailing higher latitudes. Your posts assuage any concerns I had about heating, condensation and durability. Wishing you fair winds:)