I have always thought that foreign-policy idealism has to be tempered with realism.

Britain does not normally these days play a huge part in peacekeeping.

Ambition is best tempered with self-knowledge!

Iran's continued, widespread persecution of ethnic minorities, human rights defenders and political prisoners is a disgrace and stands as a shameful indictment of Iran's leaders.

Obviously a Conservative government will always leave taxes lower than they have been under Labour. Those things go with the territory of the Conservative Party.

Let's not be afraid to speak the common sense truth: you can't have high standards without good discipline.

There's only one growth strategy: work hard.

I'm not, nor is anybody I know in government part of a nasty right wing clique.

I know people are fickle.

We have to face the reality of climate change. It is arguably the biggest threat we are facing today.

Where defining foreign policy as 'ethical' went wrong was that it implied that all decisions would be exclusive in every respect of any dealings with unethical regimes.

Trying hard and working hard is its own reward. It feeds the soul. It affirms your will and your power. And it radiates from you, lighting the way for all those who see you.

It is impossible to enjoy idling thoroughly unless one has plenty of work to do.

Well if I could play like Wynton, I wouldn't play like Wynton.

There will come a time, when all of us are dead. All of us. There will come a time when there are no human beings remaining to remember that anyone ever existed or that our species ever did anything.

I'm not the marrying kind -" St. Vincent snorted. "No man is. Marriage is a female invention.

With time and patience, the mulberry leaf becomes satin.

I wasn't allowed to be clever when I was young and blonde, but now I am 50 and an old blonde, I am allowed to have gravitas. With wrinkles comes wisdom.

Anything organic requires some dose of variability so it can adapt all the time, and fixing things is not a good idea.

When I found out that there was eight Presidents before George Washington, I wanted to smack somebody.

Every kid should sit in the velvet at least once in their lifetime.