At the launch of the new Draft Bill on energy, Liberal Democrat Secretary of State of Energy and Climate Change Ed Davey, writes:
Over the next decade, around a fifth of existing power plants are due to close, against a background of increased energy demand and increasing prices. We need new investment simply to keep the lights on.
But more than that, we need a clean energy revolution to meet our ambitious climate change goals and make this the greenest government ever.
That’s why I am bringing forward a new Energy Bill today.
You can read more about our clean energy revolution here.
We also need to transform our energy market to reduce the risk and cost of low carbon technologies.
That’s what our Bill does.
The UK is fast becoming a world leader in renewable energy, especially in off shore wind. I want us to lead the world in Carbon Capture and Storage too.
And we are also tackling rising energy bills. Without reforming the energy market bills will rise by around £200 in the coming years. Our reforms will mean bills are around 4% lower than they otherwise would have been.
Going green is good for the economy, good for Britain and good for you.
For me, nothing better illustrates the Liberal Democrat mission to make Britain a fairer place than our Pupil Premium: extra money for the most disadvantaged children in our schools.
We are letting schools decide the best way to spend this money. I want to strike a deal with our schools and teachers: we’ll give you the cash, the freedom, and we’ll reward and celebrate your success. But in return, we want you to redouble your efforts to close the gap between your poorer pupils and everyone else. We won’t be telling you what to do; but we will be watching what you achieve.
(Click picture to play video)
It is shameful that, despite all the promise on a four or five year old’s first day at school, or the passion of their teachers, you can all too often plot that child’s path just by asking how much their parents earn.
The £2.5billion Pupil Premium was one of the four pledges on the front page of our manifesto. And now, with Liberal Democrats in government, schools are using the money for things like breakfast clubs; homework clubs; or to provide one-to-one-tuition. These are the sort of experiences many middle class children take for granted but a poorer child might rarely enjoy.
This week, Paul Burstow (Liberal Democrat minister at the Department of Health) has launched a national £4 million lung cancer awareness campaign. The campaign, the first of its kind, will use TV, radio and press adverts, and advertising on pharmacist bags and inside GP surgeries, to raise awareness of the disease.
One of its aims is to persuade anyone who has had a cough for more than three weeks to see their doctor.
With 33,000 new cases diagnosed each year, lung cancer is a blight on the lives of far too many of our families and an early diagnosis can make all the difference. Please take the opportunity of the Be Clear on Cancer campaign to find out more about prevention and diagnosis, and to visit your local doctor if you’ve had a persistent cough – it is always better to be safe than sorry!
Official reports have confirmed that no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has increased council tax for their residents. This is unlike both other major parties, many of which are increasing council tax by up to 3.5% this year.
Commenting on Labour and Conservative councils’ record on Council Tax, Liberal Democrat Party President, Tim Farron said:
“While Labour and the Tories fight over how many of their councils raised Council Tax, it’s clear that with the Liberal Democrats your money is safest: no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has raised Council Tax.
“Ordinary working families are struggling already with paying bills, without their councils increasing the burden.
“The choice in next month’s elections is clear: vote Liberal Democrat for financially responsible councils that create jobs. Vote Labour and the Tories for waste, mismanagement and tax rises.”
As well as freezing council tax across the country, Liberal Democrat councils are protecting front-line services, fighting to keep libraries and Sure Start centres open. This is in addition to the achievements of the Liberal Democrats in government, which after the Budget include a £130 income tax cut for all working families, the largest-ever rise in the basic state pension, an increase in child tax credits for the poorest families, and an increase in the Lib Dem Pupil Premium to £600 for every pupil receiving Free School Meals.
At every level of government, the Liberal Democrats are cutting taxes for low- and middle-earners and better targeting help to those that need it the most. It is a record of financial responsibility of which we can be proud.
A first look at part of this week’s Liberal Democrat Local Election Broadcast. This clip looks at our key pledge to cut taxes for working families, and celebrates the fact that Liberal Democrats in government have achieved:
The biggest-ever single uplift in the tax-free personal allowance
A £3.5 billion tax cut for working men and women
840,000 of the lowest earners in the country lifted completely out of paying Income Tax
Next year, the allowance increases again (to £9,205) – within touching distance of our manifesto promise to increase the Income Tax threshold to £10,000.
These are all significant achievements that are already making a difference for millions of hard-working men and women across Britain. Real change for real families in tough times – promised and delivered by the Liberal Democrats.
As a result of this Budget, someone working a full week on minimum wage will see their income tax bill cut by over 50% compared to under Labour.
Increasing the personal allowance to £9,205 takes us within touching distance of our number one manifesto pledge – ensuring no one pays any tax on the first £10,000 they earn.
Thanks to our changes, a basic rate taxpayer will be paying £45 a month less in tax than they would have been under Labour.
The Tycoon Tax, an increase in stamp duty for high value properties and other new taxes on wealth will raise five times as much as the 50p tax rate. Those with annual incomes of more than £150,000 a year will be paying on average an additional £1,300 a year in tax, as a result of this Budget.
Of course, this is a Coalition Budget and we did not get our own way on everything. Conservative priorities are not ours. But as on so many other issues, we have made sure that there is a real Liberal Democrat stamp on this Budget.
Lower taxes for more than 20 million working people; effective new taxes on the rich.
This is a Budget we can be proud of – a Budget for the many, not the few.
2012 is going to show the best of Britain. With the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee, we’ll be celebrating our past but with our face to the future and the change it will bring. In Government, the Liberal Democrats are at the heart of that change.
Of course, times are tough. Families are under pressure, worried about paying their bills. That’s why we’re cutting tax for working people while calling time on the tycoon tax dodgers.
From next month, 25 million working people will have more money in their pocket, because of us. You can help spread the word about our £60 tax cut by clicking here.
Going green is not a luxury for the good times – Liberals have always fought to protect the environment, and that’s why we’re part of the greenest government this country has ever had. Not only are we making the right choices for the environment, we’re putting green policies at the heart of our economic recovery.
This is a liberal nation with liberal values; hard work, fair play and a sense of freedom. I’m proud that the Liberal Democrats in Government are repairing Labour’s industrial-scale destruction of that liberty.
Just think for a moment what we’ll have achieved by 2015. The first gay marriage, and end to child detention and the first elections to the House of Lords, to name just three.
These are just some clips from the speech Nick Clegg MP, Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister made to the Gateshead Lib Dem conference, for the text of his full speech click here.
Times are tough, families are under pressure, worried about paying their bills. That’s why the Lib Dems are cutting tax for working people while calling time on the tycoon tax dodgers.
From next month, 25 million working people will have more money in their pocket, because of the Liberal Democrats. Watch the video and help spread the word about our £60 tax cut by clicking here.
In tough times, the Liberal Democrats believe you should keep more of the money that you earn. That’s why the Liberal Democrats have long called for the tax-free threshold raised to £10,000 – giving you a tax cut when you need it most.
Liberal Democrat plans would save working people £700 a year –that’s an extra £60 in your wages every month. And more than 3.5million older and low-paid people will be freed from paying any income tax altogether. This is a plan we put on the front page of our General Election manifesto and it went into the Coalition Agreement.
We have already started putting this in to practice.
In April last year, millions of ordinary working people were given a £200 annual tax cut and since last April 800,000 low paid people no longer pay any income tax at all. But we believe our tax cuts need to happen faster and go further. And we want your help in making it happen.
Ahead of the Budget next month, Nick Clegg and Liberal Democrats in the government will be pushing to speed up our tax plans. Please join this campaign and sign the petition which is on the Number 10 website here.
Liberal Democrats want tax cuts for working people, not the rich. Please help us to make that happen.
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