Quotes by David Blunkett

About David Blunkett:

David Blunkett, is best known as a British politician and more recently academic, having represented the Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough constituency for 28 years through to the 7th of May when he stepped down at the General Election. Blind since birth, and coming from a poor family in one of Sheffield's most deprived districts, he rose to become Education and Employment Secretary, Home Secretary and Work and Pensions Secretary in Tony Blair's Cabinet following Labour's victory in the 1997 general election.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Simple numbers of people of a particular age tell us nothing about the condition of their health, the environment in which they live, and the support systems they can afford to pay for.

David Blunkett

Bishops and judges are some of the best politicians in the world. They know how to manipulate the political process.

David Blunkett

The democratic state can sometimes abuse its power as much as those who seek to destroy it abuse fundamental rights and democratic practices.

David Blunkett

It is feasible for someone who comes from a privileged background to understand the privilege they have had and to use the formal political arena in a way that would disperse power and engage with people in their own lives.

David Blunkett

At school, I was brought up on revolting food - sausages, sausages and Spam - but at home, I had the most wonderful sponge puddings, which I don't indulge in very often now.

David Blunkett

Balancing the common good with the freedom and liberty to exercise that individuality has been and remains a challenge for those committed to democracy while understanding that the polis ensures our participation and therefore our citizenship.

David Blunkett

How to strike the right balance between our privacy and our expectation that the state will protect us and facilitate our freedom is one of the most difficult challenges facing us all.

David Blunkett

I prefer a positive view of freedom, drawing on another tradition of political thinking that goes all the way back to the ancient Greek polis.

David Blunkett

Let's not allow the voice of the people to be overwhelmed by the siren song of those who opposed regulation, who demanded that government should stand aside and let finance and business run the show.

David Blunkett

I'm a great aficionado of history. I was deeply affected by seeing the disintegration of any chance of democracy coping with fascism in the Weimar republic, where woolly-minded, well-meaning liberalism actually allowed the forces of darkness to use d...

David Blunkett

I love the walk although my security team weren't too sure to begin with but I was anxious to be able to lead a near normal life. Whilst walking I do get the chance to meet people and keep in touch.

David Blunkett

To make sense of a world in which rapid change and globalisation create genuine insecurity, we need benchmarks by which we can judge our actions and their long-term impact.

David Blunkett

We have a media that presents every politician as being as bad as the next. There is no distinguishing between one good idea or another; no explanation of why constitutional change should be uppermost in the minds of the people I represent.

David Blunkett

Children whose parents return to study do much better at school. Offenders who persist with studies are much less likely to reoffend. The national mental health strategy recognises the important role adult learning can play for people recovering from...

David Blunkett

As home secretary, I gained a reputation for being 'tough'; less concerned with liberty than with public protection.

David Blunkett

Being a Labour home secretary in the 21st century means fighting a constant battle against both extreme Right and Left.

David Blunkett

Being home secretary involves having to face some of the worst of human behaviour and challenges of modern society.

David Blunkett

As a former home secretary, I have access to and knowledge of the workings of the system in a way that individuals unfamiliar with the courts can never hope to have.

David Blunkett

My job as Labour Home Secretary is to ensure people are prepared to listen to us when we take on our opponents across the political spectrum.

David Blunkett

Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling, in hosting the G20 summit and in the budget, must display the same boldness in tackling the instability at home that they do in promoting a worldwide answer to the global meltdown.

David Blunkett

Author Bio

  • NameDavid Blunkett
  • DescriptionBritish politician
  • BornJune 6, 1947
  • CountryUnited Kingdom
  • ProfessionPolitician