David Blunkett
David Blunkett
David Blunkett, Baron Blunkett, PCis best known as a British politician and more recently as an academic, having represented the Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough constituency for 28 years through to 7 May 2015 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...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth6 June 1947
That is why with enormous regret I have tendered my resignation to the prime minister today.
History teaches us that, whatever we say, racists will always distort the words of mainstream politicians to make themselves sound more respectable.
It's not just parliament that requires radical modernisation. It's our democratic processes.
In the U.K., we have always been an open, trading nation, enriched by our global links. Contemporary patterns of migration extend this tradition.
Being home secretary involves having to face some of the worst of human behaviour and challenges of modern society.
I am not a parliamentarian. I am a politician. Some MPs leave and are itching to get back. I don't feel that. This is just a work environment.
I encouraged Tony to serve out as much of this term as he can as PM. I think that's what he'll do, and I hope he'll want me to do this job through that period. I think he will.
Human nature is you get carried away, so we have to protect ourselves from ourselves.
So good on them. And whether it is a year or two years, it actually will be a sensible process of combining the talents that we have.
In an ageing society, it makes sense to support older adults to develop new skills, prolonging their working lives.
I don't like prolonged, highly expensive commissions, especially if they are chaired by judges. We seem to have overwhelming faith in judges.
I didn't come into politics to have to deal with the issue of clandestine entry, illegal working, or an asylum system that allows a free run for right-wing bigots.
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.
the state has a role in helping people through rapid economic change. But not as a permanent safety net.