I loathe and detest all this trivialisation of politics.

I refuse not to have a sense of humour.

I spent the 1960s and 1970s seeking myself - the working-class tradition of self-education.

I think George Bush is the most corrupt American president since Harding in the Twenties. He is not the legitimate president. This really is a completely unsupportable government and I look forward to it being overthrown as much as I looked forward to Saddam Hussein being overthrown.

If I blew my nose the Daily Express and the Daily Mail would say that I am trying to spread germ warfare.

I think I have gone through my entire public career never telling a lie. I have made mistakes but I never knowingly lied.

I grew up in a house with very few books.