Quotes from David Lammy

Edgy' music has always formed the cornerstone to any teenage rebellion. Most indulge in it precisely because adults like me don't like them doing so.

I know what to say, how to say it, how to bring profile to the issues I care about and people want to listen to me.

If companies shared profits with their workers, employers and employees would have a greater mutual interest in each other's success.

Being in opposition takes some getting used to. As a former minister, you don't just lose your job and the enormous resources of the civil service, you also have to watch programmes that you were involved in being gradually dismantled.

I'm a prolific tweeter. It allows me to respond to the news of the day or comment on something Jacob Rees-Mogg has said on behalf of my constituents.

Fathers matter.

Fathers need to be made aware of their responsibilities - and that's up to all of us to communicate, as parents, as politicians and as members of a community.

It is the responsibility of all of us to create a culture that encourages and enables fathers to spend more time with their families.

When I make a contribution in debates and in our public life, the House wants to hear what I say. It goes quiet - it wants to know what my opinion is.

Separate but equal is a fraud.

At school, I was frequently subjected to racial abuse.

I grew up under Thatcher; the era of apartheid; the era of the poll tax; the era of riots. I remember Neil Kinnock was a hero.

We look around at our national politicians, we do not see national politicians who are without fault. And, actually, we see quite a lot who get very far - let's take Boris Johnson- with considerable. White. Privilege. Failure after failure after failure rewarded.

I'm not going to be cowed by the rampant racism, the organised racism, that comes from parts of the alt-right.

In Britain, we ought to be in a position where doctors and therapists are able to prescribe mindfulness, acupuncture, osteopathy de rigueur, and it not only be available in certain fantastic surgeries in London and Brighton.

A good society is characterised not just by liberty but by mutual respect and responsibility. When this breaks down it takes a lot more than police officers to put things right.

The pressures of being an MP mean free time is a very rare luxury.

I remember singing as a chorister in Peterborough Cathedral, having won a music scholarship to go to school there, and realising for the first time in my life what true excellence was.

The great thing about running is that so often you wake up and you think: 'I really don't feel like this.' And even when you're up and out, that first kilometre is tough. But then once you get to 3km and you're getting to the end of the run, it's really fantastic.

I like the state of being self-aware, it's interesting when you start to look at your own habits.

Reading international law at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London was a wonderful experience. With its incredibly diverse student population, I began to immerse myself in the ways social, legal and political forces contribute to human rights and freedoms.

From protecting consumers to establishing common standards and promoting free trade, the E.U. plays a central role. And nation states alone cannot tackle common threats such as climate change without the co-ordination that the E.U. and other supranational institutions provide.

I spend much of my time in a suit and tie with my top button done up and my sensible shoes neatly polished. When it comes to work, my appearance is about communicating professionalism and confidence.

We have to challenge head-on the way the BNP takes legitimate concerns and manipulates them in the interests of its fascist agenda.