DAVID BLUNKETT ate humble pie yesterday as he began an embarrassing round of apologies to his Cabinet colleagues over unflattering comments he had made about them.

The embattled Home Secretary, his workload heavier than ever because of the crisis in his personal life, had to spend time telephoning the Cabinet ministers who have been rallying behind him in recent days.

Mr Blunkett called Jack Straw, Gordon Brown, Charles Clarke, Tessa Jowell and Patricia Hewitt to say sorry after the remarks, apparently made about a year ago, surfaced in Stephen Pollard’s biography, which is being serialised in the Daily Mail.

Apart from in the case of Mr Straw, where the critical comments came from a former aide and not from himself, Mr Blunkett owned up and and told the ministers that he had been suffering a bad day, under pressure over identity cards, when he made the remarks and never should have done so.

An aide said: “He was like a bear with a sore head, but he should never have taken it out on others. It was one of those days. He was in a bad mood and it was a very bad day.”

Yesterday’s one-to-one conversations with the victims of his indiscretion appear to have gone reasonably although, in some cases, they appear to have been uncomfortable. Mr Blunkett’s priority was clearly Mr Straw, whom he succeeded as Home Secretary.

The Pollard account quoted an aide of Mr Bunkett as saying: “God alone knows what Jack did for four years. It was a giant mess.”

Mr Blunkett told Mr Straw that the remarks were not his and did not represent his views. They had come from a former aide and Mr Blunkett was sorry about them. Mr Straw was said to have been grateful for the call, but MPs doubt whether he would have been happy about the reason for it.

Mr Blunkett had alleged that Mr Clarke’s Education Department had failed to continue his own drive to raise standards. “They’ve taken their foot off the accelerator. They’ve gone soft.” Mr Clarke appears to have taken Mr Blunkett’s apology well. An aide said: “Charles does not get bothered about these things. People say things. He is not at all fazed. It was an easy conversation.”

It is unlikely that the call between Mr Blunkett and Patricia Hewitt, the Trade and Industry Secretary, would have been easy. He apparently accused her of not thinking strategically and of nearly allowing the Competition Commission to demolish local chemists. Ms Hewitt’s aides made clear that she had done exactly the opposite and stood up to the proposals. She made that clear to Mr Blunkett yesterday but aides declined to comment on the nature of the conversation.

Mr Blunkett’s chat with Mr Brown was clearly amicable. The Home Secretary’s charge against the Chancellor was that he threw his weight about and cowed everyone into submission, apart, of course, from Mr Blunkett.

The Brown camp was given early warning on Sunday night that embarrassing remarks were about to be released. The two men spoke yesterday morning. A friend of the Chancellor said: “Gordon has spoken up for David on every occasion the last few days. They have a warm friendship and in those comments he was clearly talking about Gordon in the first term. No offence has been taken.”

A similar good-natured conversation ensued with Ms Jowell, whom he had accused last year of being weak over the licensing Bill.

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