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You have to keep a strong sense of who you really are - and I have a pretty strong sense of myself. It gets me in trouble when I say this, but I don't think of myself as a politician. I've always tried to be honest when communicating with people.

I believe that a politician needs to be with people.

Any politician in a democracy has to be mindful of public opinion.

Generally speaking, politicians are an odd bunch. They seem to have very thick skins and genuinely don't care what people think. And charm is a very important part of the politician's armoury. I try to resist that kind of charm.

I'm not a politician. I'd make a lousy politician.

You often see politicians who try to put on a different persona; they think they should be more jolly or serious. Invariably, the persona they choose is worse than their own.

I don't think I have the demeanor to be a politician. I'm used to making decisions and to a certain extent being in charge.

Politicians around the world are very different, but they all have one thing in common: The first thing they respond to is public opinion.

We talk about politicians being in public life, but they seldom appear in the public space where everyone is free to appear as a citizen.