Britain Quotes - Page 22

• Whole communities are growing up without fathers or male role models. Bringing up a family in the best of circumstances is not easy. To try to do it by placing the entire burden on women - 91% of single-parent families in Britain are headed by the mother, according to census data - is practically absurd and morally indefensible.

  Jonathan Sacks

  Mother, Growing Up, Father

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• The trouble with the Labour Party leadership and the trade union leadership, they're quite willing to applaud millions on the streets of the Philippines or in Eastern Europe, without understanding the need to also produce millions of people on the streets of Britain.

  Arthur Scargill

  Leadership, Party, Europe

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• One of the most heartening phenomena in today's Britain is the great diversity of the modern nerd - the nerd is out and proud, and while she may love 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' merchandise more than is strictly warranted, she is in every way to be cherished as an exemplar of cosmopolitanism and tolerance.

  Will Self

  Diversity, Tolerance, Nerd

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• Political activists of all stripes are usually a wacky bunch, and never more so than in a system like Britain's, where power is effected via the quiescence of the electorate as much as its convictions.

  Will Self

  Political, Stripes, Conviction

  "Will Self walks through Britain's flag-waving heartlands" by Will Self, www.theguardian.com. March 7, 2013.

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• On April 19 1943, the Bermuda conference gathered, with the participation of representatives from Britain and the United States, in order to discuss saving the Jews of Europe. In fact, the participants did everything in their power to avoid dealing with the problem.

  Ariel Sharon

  Order, Europe, United States

  "Anger amid the tears - did the allies do enough to save Jews?" by Owen Bowcott, www.theguardian.com. January 28, 2005.

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• Americans are much more open than people in Britain.

  Michael Sheen

  People

  "Biography/ Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.

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• While I enjoy spending time in L.A., Britain is my home.

  Michael Sheen

  Home, Spending Time, Enjoy

  "Biography/ Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.

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• I hate this argument that says little Britain or something outside, or Britain is part of a wider Europe. We can both be within our trading relationships within Europe but we can also be a fantastic global trader.

  Iain Duncan Smith

  Hate, Europe, Littles

  "Cabinet minister considered resigning over EU budget revolt, says Tory MP" by Nicholas Watt, www.theguardian.com. November 4, 2012.

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• If Britain is to have a stable, affordable pension system, people need to work longer, but we will reward their hard work with a decent state pension that will enable them to enjoy quality of life in their retirement.

  Iain Duncan Smith

  Retirement, Hard Work, People

  "Politics live blog" by Andrew Sparrow, www.theguardian.com. June 24, 2010.

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• We have to ensure that our immigration system works in the interests of Britain, enabling us to make a realistic promise to our young school-leavers. It is part of our contract with the British people.

  Iain Duncan Smith

  School, People, Promise

  "Iain Duncan Smith appeals to businesses to employ young Britons" by Adam Gabbatt, www.theguardian.com. July 1, 2011.

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• Herbert, my father, was born in Britain but went out to Africa in his teens to join his father and built up an 18,000-acre ranch in what was then Northern Rhodesia, providing work for the locals. He was my hero when I was a boy.

  Wilbur Smith

  Father, Hero, Boys

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• Since the Protestant majority in Northern Ireland wants to remain a part of Great Britain, and since Ireland itself has shown little interest in reunification, the IRA's prospects for success through political channels have always been limited.

  James Surowiecki

  Political, Majority, Ira

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• If you lead a country like Britain, a strong country, a country which has taken a lead in world affairs in good times and in bad, a country that is always reliable, then you have to have a touch of iron about you.

  Margaret Thatcher

  Country, Strong, Taken

  "The secret of outstanding leadership" by Lisa Bachelor, www.theguardian.com. January 15, 2010.

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• Literary life used to be quite different in Britain in the years I lived there, from 1971 to 1989, because money was not a factor - no one made very much except from U.S. sales and the occasional windfall.

  Paul Theroux

  Years, Different, Used

  "Fiction in the Age of E-Books". "The Atlantic" Interview, www.theatlantic.com. 2010.

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• I feel the art world in New York has a stronger following than Britain. If you go to a New York art district on a Saturday morning, it will be so busy with families and openings - art is much more ingrained in the culture.

  Sam Taylor-Wood

  Art, Morning, New York

  "When Sam Taylor-Wood met Yoko Ono". Interview With Kate Kellaway, www.theguardian.com. June 16, 2012.

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• Class still matters in Britain today.

  Johnny Vegas

  Class, Matter, Today

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• I believe that Britain is becoming more class-conscious, and I quake at the very idea of Old Etonians ruling the world again.

  Johnny Vegas

  Believe, Class, Ideas

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• The honorable William Penn, late governor of Pennsylvania, was chosen agent to the Court of Britain, and directed to deliver the petition to the King himself and to endeavor by his personal influence to procure a favorable reception to this last address.

  Mercy Otis Warren

  Kings, Pennsylvania, Agents

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• People in Britain always think of 'Jesus Christ Superstar' as a musical - it wasn't.

  Andrew Lloyd Webber

  Jesus, Thinking, People

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• Here's the truth. The proposed top rate of income tax is not 50 per cent. It is 50 per cent plus 1.5 per cent national insurance paid by employees plus 13.3 per cent paid by employers. That's not 50 per cent. Two years from now, Britain will have the highest tax rate on earned income of any developed country.

  Andrew Lloyd Webber

  Country, Truth, Years

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• With a diplomat father, for whom foreign postings were a fact of life, my siblings and I were expected to attend boarding schools in Britain.

  Arabella Weir

  Father, Sibling, School

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• Both in Britain and America, huge publicity has been given to stem cells, particularly embryonic stem cells, and the potential they offer. Of course, the study of stem cells is one of the most exciting areas in biology, but I think it is unlikely that embryonic stem cells are likely to be useful in healthcare for a long time.

  Robert Winston

  Thinking, Cells, Britain And America

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• Coming from Britain, I was terrified of meeting all these other artists, because artists over there tend to fight with each other a lot, the premise being that there's not enough room for everybody.

  Thom Yorke

  Fighting, Artist, Rooms

  "Thom Yorke’s View from the Stage". Interview with Judy Bond, www.lionsroar.com. November 1, 1998.

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• Dover's cliffs call to mind the Roman invasion; the Battle of Britain; our proximity to, yet difference from, mainland Europe; and international trade and exploration, both fair and exploitative.

  Julian Baggini

  Europe, Differences, Mind

  "Why the white cliffs of Dover are so special" by Julian Baggini, www.theguardian.com. August 19, 2012.

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• Swimming and athletics are the big gigs at the Olympic games. Cycling and rowing are pretty big for Britain, but globally, the two big things are athletics and swimming.

  Clare Balding

  Swimming, Cycling, Games

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