Sally is my wife, but not my chattel or my property.

I've never been much given to little social cliques.

Fairness is not about statistical equality.

If someone is being very cheeky, it can be quite fun to deal with that situation.

For far too long the House of Commons has been run as little more than a private club by and for gentleman amateurs.

I pride myself on being courteous to people, and trying to fashion good relations.

I am seeking every day to restore faith in Parliament - to ensure we have a House of Commons which is representative, effective and reconnected to the people we serve.

I never aspired to be Speaker simply so I could say, 'I am the Speaker of the House of Commons,' and tell my children that.

I think the record shows that as Speaker, I have taken the lead in cleaning up politics.

I don't want to crawl over the entrails of past disputes.

It's a cowardly form of politics to use my spouse to beat me.

Why tomorrow when there is today?

When men and women punish each other for truth telling, we reinforce the notion that lies are better.

I just to put out the best records I can and perform the best I can.

I would... learn how to drive... have a nice car... and drive it.

To forget pain is to be painless; to forget care is to be rid of it; to go abroad is to accomplish both.

The hour through which you are at present passing, the man whom you meet here and now, the task on which you are engaged at this very moment - these are always the most important in your whole life.

Wickedness may prosper for awhile, but in the long run, he that sets all the knaves at work will pay them.

People who say you're just as old as you feel are all wrong, fortunately.

It kept him alive, he was certain; even more, it kept his darkest of his demons at bay.

Mistakes can occur during hostilities.