have a great deal in common and a lot to discuss.

[That assessment was similarly relaxed shortly before the July 7 bombings.] We don’t comment on that, … We are in a high state of alert which we need to be.

In a sense, what we do with the regional development agencies is to give them resources to look at the deficiencies in the economy in the regional areas, so they can address themselves to that.

It’s not moving as fast as we’d hoped it would,

What government has been doing, we’ve got major programmes now, of billions of pounds, which are directed by central government into these areas of deprivation.

It is totally unacceptable that Britain could be held to ransom in this kind of blockade raising out of a dispute in France.

He also made an enormous contribution to British politics in opposition and in government,

In the north east, there, they have had quite a bit of government offices moving in. It’s not a new policy.

There is no doubt that Tony Blair is acting in a very courageous way and is doing what he believes to be right and we are supporting him in that,

Why can’t we, with a more intelligent policy, actually have houses that are affordable, built at higher densities than they are at the moment and built on brownfield sites.

He was a principled foreign secretary, he was reforming leader of the house and even when he resigned regretfully from the government he did on principle he did it with style and elegance,

It was a terrible tragedy that that young lad was killed but … an independent inquiry is underway. Let us wait for the facts,

It’s moving in the right direction. It was in decline under the previous administration.

The objectives remain the same and indeed that has been made clear by the Prime Minister in a speech yesterday that the objectives are clear and the one about the removal of the Taliban is...

You go down some street – no doubt it’s there, and we have to do something about it, and our programmes are designed to do that – but if that’s a picture of Newcastle, it’s...

Governments are never loved … when you have been eight years in government there is always something people aren’t happy with.

We are proceeding through international law to deal with Saddam. We are working very hard to get agreement for the second resolution.

Refurbishing I’ve done in the first three years and I’m still giving housing money, of course, to the north.

If a party loses its local authority base, it won’t be long before it runs the risk of losing power nationally.

a lot of jostling and abuse.

Coming from low demand, houses available, prices falling. Depends from area to area, but if you go to the south, it’s exactly the opposite.

At present there are more Tory candidates than I’ve had hot dinners – and you can see I have had a few,

So if you look at the money we’ve given, we’ve actually still given more in fact in housing to the north than they had the years before.

Most Tories seem to think that ‘ethics’ is a county near Middlesex

Legislation in itself will not end the dispute, but it is prudent to take these powers to use if necessary to help reach an agreement.

Down in the south, it’s how we find the brownfield sites without taking too much land take to meet the tremendous demand for housing, and that’s what I’ve done.

I want to be a champion of your industry.

That’s what I think regions are about, making central government more accountable and fairer.

I’m not a fancy rapier man-more of a broadsword. Not for me the flesh wound. I prefer to take the head off.

It does sound not a very sensitive way to deal with such a difficult matter.

First of all, in our first period of office, we were concerned about the renovation of all those old properties you talked about.

I haven’t seen the letter and I think it would be terrible if it was done that way,

The choice is not normally between the north and south. It might be between Britain and Europe.

I don’t think he is welcome by many people in this country, is he? … But at the moment he has the right to come in and out. … It’s a democracy, not a dictatorship,...

I love coming to Tories’ seats and roughing them up… that is what elections are about.

I don’t make decisions by the Attorney-General. The Attorney-General makes the decisions in these matters. There’s not even a war either.

the greatest parliamentarian of his generation.

There is progress taking place, growth is better. We’re only talking about two years there.

Enjoy your holiday make it a long one,

Macho? Moi?

I have only been seeking to get them to the negotiating table and, thank God, that’s where they are.

I didn’t say the lady was tired. She constantly said it herself, … She was too tired to take in all the complexities. I quoted her words.

We are making the fundamental changes. It was like the decent housing target. We said by 2010, we’d have taken a million houses and refurbished them into decent housing.

At the moment he has the right to come in and go out,

By entering the entry negotiations, Turkey also enters into obligations in regard to recognizing all the countries within the EU and the obligations Ankara has signed up to.

I was the one that brought it in, but not only for the north-east, for every area so we can develop all the regional economies, lift up the national productivity, get greater wealth and share...

Life is better under the Tories’ sounds like a Steve Norris chat up line

We believe the 36, nearly 40, billion pound discount given for a right to buy houses took a million houses out of the public housing sector which is desperately needed for rent.

Well, if she said she couldn’t understand the deal, how could she know that it was a bad deal?

I’m kind of on the fence. On one hand it’s easy to take it and be done with it. But on the other hand, it sends the wrong message to my daughter.