Blunkett to speak

In a rare public appearance since he resigned from the Cabinet, David Blunkett is to speak at next month's Vision 2005.

His involvement, confirmed by the host of the event, the RNIB, means that the four-day conference will receive a higher profile than before.

The tough-talking former home secretary has been blind since birth, and has a reputation for taking on established thinking to implement radical change.

An RNIB spokeswoman said: 'Mr Blunkett will give his talk at the closing ceremony, on Thursday April 7. 

'We do not have details as yet, but we hope he'll discuss his personal experience of sight loss and changes in attitudes to blind and partially sighted people.'

Over 2,000 delegates from over 70 countries are expected to attend Vision 2005, which is billed as the world's largest sight loss conference. The event, held under the auspices of the International Society for Low Vision Research & Rehabilitation (ISLRR), is held in a different country every three years and attracts speakers from around the world. This year will be the first time it has been held in the UK. Three years ago the conference was held in Sweden, and the next is scheduled for Montreal in 2008.

Vision 2005 will take place at the QE II conference centre in London from April 4-7.