Quotes from Theresa May

If, before 2020, there is a choice between further spending cuts, more borrowing and tax rises, the priority must be to avoid tax increases. They would disrupt consumption, employment and investment.

Prison works.

I think if you talk to anybody who would like to have had children... I mean, you look at families all the time and you see there is something there that you don't have.

I was a teenage godmother.

The overall policing budget is protected.

No, I can tell you one of the first things that happens to a home secretary when they arrive in the job is that they are given a briefing about the security matters that they will be dealing with and I deal with security matters on a daily basis.

My whole philosophy is about doing, not talking.

It is quite widely known that I like shoes. This is not something that defines me as either a woman or a politician, but it has come to define me in the eyes of the newspapers. I wore a pair of leopard-print kitten heels to a Conservative Party Conference a few years ago and the papers have continued to focus on my feet ever since.

Within the E.U., in a wider context, people are increasingly recognising the need to prevent the abuse of free movement.

Sham marriages have been widespread; people have been allowed to settle in Britain without being able to speak English; and there have not been rules in place to stop migrants becoming a burden on the taxpayer. We are changing all of that.

I'm not willing to risk more terrorist plots succeeding and more paedophiles going free.

The right place for a terrorist is a prison cell; the right place for a foreign terrorist is a foreign prison cell far away from Britain.

Communities need to feel that they can accommodate people. Rather than feeling that it's not possible to integrate and that the stress and strain on housing and public services is too great.

There is only one rule of law in our country, which provides rights and security for every citizen.

One girl subjected to FGM or forces to marry is one girl too many.

We are engaged in a struggle that is fought on many fronts and in many forms.

On gay adoption I have changed my mind.

Nobody wins when the police are sent to look after people suffering from mental health problems; vulnerable people don't get the care they need and deserve, and the police can't get on with the job they are trained to do.

My pitch is very simple. My name is Theresa May, and I think I'm the best person to be Prime Minister of this country.

One area in which we can be certain mass immigration has an effect is housing. More than one third of all new housing demand in Britain is caused by immigration. And there is evidence that without the demand caused by mass immigration, house prices could be 10% lower over a 20-year period.

Like Indiana Jones, I don't like snakes - though that might lead some to ask why I'm in politics.

The last time Boris Johnson did a deal with the Germans he came back with three nearly new water cannon.

When you first come into Parliament, it's a daunting place because you feel you've so much to learn. Once you've been re-elected, you feel much more confident. It just gives you a bit of a boost.

If we are going to realise our ambition of ending the harmful practices of FGM and forced marriage, the role of young people in pushing for change is crucial. We also need to ensure that everyone, from government to civil society, is playing their part.