Quotes from Damian Green

One of the most difficult decisions for any prime minister is when to give up on a bad but long-cherished policy.

I think there should be a major cut in the power of government to interfere in the day-to-day running of our schools. I want this because our guiding principle is that schools run schools best.

Having ground my teeth at educational theorists who say Shakespeare is irrelevant to inner-city children, I was overjoyed to be there when a class of 12-year-olds who had studied Twelfth Night were asked if they wanted to see it performed. A forest of hands shot up.

From online local care portals to greater use of personal budgets we need wholesale change if we are to move the social care system to a level that preserves the dignity and comfort of those who depend on it.

Abolishing university tuition fees and getting rid of unnecessary speed cameras are ideas that can be grasped instantly, and grab the attention of those for whom politics is a complete switch-off.

The task for governments across Europe is to take a practical approach that can meet our humanitarian obligations in both the short and long term.

The first duty of government is to ensure its citizens are protected, but ID cards could never have done that. They would have been a distraction from the real work that needs to be done in countering terrorism, illegal immigration or benefit fraud.

The public needs to know that any Government has a sense of purpose.

Just as strong Labour supporters in the 1980s could not come to terms with the fact that most people did not hate Mrs Thatcher, so many of my closest Conservative friends find it difficult to believe that the messages and style of the past don't work any longer.

Almost every byelection is described by breathless commentators as the most important since Norwich/Hillhead/Orpington, but there is no requirement for political parties to overreact as well.

The immigration system itself must be quick, fair and efficient at coming to decisions.

One of Enoch Powell's wiser remarks was that politicians complaining about the press were like sailors complaining about the sea. It is not the job of newspapers to win elections; it is the job of political parties.

An alienated population seldom provides the tip-offs the police need to catch criminals, or the evidence in court needed to convict. This has been a problem at times within some minority communities who regard the police as hostile. How much more difficult life would be for the police if this attitude became widespread.

Theresa May is normally at her best when she is at her boldest.

No Conservative wants a bad Brexit deal, or to do anything that increases the threat of a Corbyn Government.

Britain can thrive in the post-Brexit era, but maintaining close links with our neighbours will make a significant contribution to national success.

Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, there has been suffering and hardship on both sides of the generational divide.

One of the greatest political delusions of our age was the idea that holding a referendum on our E.U. membership would settle the argument once and for all.

We want to see our politicians working together.

The ID card was launched with fantastic claims about supposed benefits. In truth, it represented the worst of government.

Taking the left-right political spectrum, the public regards Tony Blair as being more or less dead centre and the Conservative party as way off to the right.

There is a basic state pension to which we are all entitled at a certain age, but on top of that we encourage everyone who can to save privately so that they have a more comfortable old age.

Of course mobile phones are always kept out of the room during Cabinet meetings, for security reasons. But to keep a politician from his or her mobile for a whole day is a use of power which almost amounts to torture.

It is imperative the government is held accountable to the people it represents and does not abuse its position in key areas of personal freedom and liberty.