I am genuinely not an over-the-top kind of person about politics or anything else.

To run an effective political party you need a degree of tribalism, it's the glue that holds everyone together.

I should do something about the cigarettes; I quite accept that it's bad for your health, but you know a moderate tipple is positively beneficial and, at certain times, absolutely essential.

If you were to describe me as teetotal, on behalf of my constituency I'd have to sue; that would lose me every vote in the Highlands.

To be seen to be human, provided you're doing your job at the same time, is definitely not a negative, not at all.

I will go out of this world feet first with my Lib Dem membership card in my pocket.

I'm a fully paid-up member of the human race.

Actually, I think it's quite sensible not to take yourself too seriously.

Yes, you need substance in politics - but I think your style also says something about how you arrive at some of your conclusions.

I can hardly think of an occasion when I've got into a stand-up fight with any political opponent. I've got my views, people know what they are, they can agree or they can choose to disagree. I'm not going to waste time just rubbishing everybody else.

People are not stupid.

Further Education should be about the ability to learn, not the ability to pay - everyone who is able should have the opportunity, regardless of their family background. I don't want to see students struggling with huge debts or frightened off even going to university in the first place.

My approach is always to try to be straight with people, especially about what my party can achieve.

It is true that I entered parliament at the age of 23, and have now been representing the people of my constituency for over twenty years.

I'm not someone who dwells upon past events, taking the view that life is too short.

I think that former leaders are best seen occasionally and not too often heard - particularly on the subject of their successors!

The point never to lose sight of is to be guided by the correct thing, as you see it. It's the only way to approach such profound matters and retain your integrity.

I couldn't imagine a day without music. It relaxes and stimulates me in equal measure and I hate the sound of silence - the concept, I mean, not the track by Simon and Garfunkel.

There is no satisfaction to be derived from having had many of our arguments borne out by events.

We would all rather see Iraq resolved successfully.

I think you've got to like people. There are MPs who are either painfully shy or who don't like public speaking or don't socialise very well, and you just think this must be the worst job in the world for them.

It has been the greatest privilege of my adult and public life to have served, for 32 years, as the Member of Parliament for our local Highlands and Islands communities.

A perennial problem that has faced the Scottish Highlands is that, time and again, too many of the more talented young people have had to move elsewhere - even abroad - through a lack of opportunities that should have been available.

Some ministers are fond of talking about a return to Victorian values. We must realise that those Victorian values are being expressed by some of the younger people in this society in shameful and disturbing disregard for other members of their generation who are not as fortunate as they are in having a job.

During my campaign, people of my age and younger said consistently that they would not vote because their votes simply no longer matter and because no government or member of Parliament cared a whit about their problems and their striving for employment.

To involve young people and make sure that the system is more relevant to them in Scotland, we have a clear obligation to implement a policy of home rule.

Taking a principled and consistent stance over Iraq has attracted much criticism from our detractors and opponents.

Whatever the eventual judgment, the political implications of Hutton are already clear. A devastating indictment of Labour in power - and of our political system itself.

We need less theoretical debate and more practical application and acknowledgment of what Europe can and does do so that it is brought home to people in a relevant way.

As Liberal Democrats and proponents of federalism, we must put our heads above the parapet and recapture and disseminate the true meaning of federalism. We have to win the vocabulary before we succeed in the vision.

As I spread my wings in politics, I discovered many Thatcher voters down south who were the same kind of people who loathed her in Scotland. They were puzzled by the Scots' antipathy, given the Falklands war and the strong militaristic history of the Highlands and elsewhere.

Like John Major in her wake, Thatcher was convinced that she understood the Scots - yet couldn't understand why we remained so stubbornly resistant towards the notion of understanding her.

I have always considered myself of the reforming centre-left.

We must restore faith in politics. Reform of the House of Lords is only one part of the answer, but it is a vital one.

A smaller-size party and parliamentary membership does not necessarily equate to lesser demands; if anything, the opposite can be the case.

The growing influence of focus groups means we are all in danger of being excessively cowed by their feedback.

Public perception of the Westminster arena, with all its posturings, does little to engender a sense of voter belief.

It is my determination that we, as a party, continue to make that fundamental restatement of liberal values in the politics of our country.

It is the government's fundamental duty to ensure the security of every individual citizen.

We believe that government in Britain should improve the quality of people's lives and improve the quality of our public services in every local community.

We believe that government in Britain should be working to restore our reputation on the international stage after Iraq and engage better within Europe.

We want a strong, vibrant economy for Britain so that we can set out a clear and affordable alternative programme for government.

We believe that government in Britain is there to protect people from terrorism and from the worst criminality, but never at the expense of our civil liberties and the basic tenets of our legal system.

It would be a tragedy if the remarkable international coalition against terrorism, successfully marshalled in the aftermath of 11 September, were to fragment over a unilateral U.S. strike against Baghdad.

This country has a proud history of opening its doors to generations of people fleeing personal persecution, civil unrest and war.

We opposed unlimited detention without trial. We stood up for trial by jury as well. And of course we spoke up for asylum seekers and for the most vulnerable in our society.

Only the Liberal Democrats have probed the government's failings consistently, thoroughly and effectively.

With every day that passes, David Blunkett becomes more insensitive in his language and more intemperate in his actions.

I find no contradiction between being a Highlander, a Scot, a citizen of the U.K. and a citizen of the European Union at one and the same time.

People have a huge desire to be listened to, for politicians to take the time to understand their problems.