Liberal Democrats launch election proposals

The Liberal Democrats have announced ten "positive proposals", which they say will form the basis of their General Election campaign.

The proposals include plans to abolish hospital targets; scrap university tuition fees and council tax and introduce only one tax increase – for the top one per cent of earners.

The Liberal Democrats have also pledged to reduce primary school class sizes, recruit 10,000 more police officers and tackle climate change and environment issues.

The party targeted the 'grey vote', by promising free personal care for the elderly and a rise of £100 a month in pensions for those over 75.

And the Liberal Democrats also stressed their opposition to the war in Iraq by stating a commitment "never to go to war again in the way it was done for Iraq".

The launch of the proposals has been backed by a heavy advertising campaign, the most substantial in the party's history. The campaign includes full-page ads in three major daily newspapers, which will be followed by a fleet of touring vans.

Liberal Democrat leader, Charles Kennedy, said that his party were promoting "positive policies" for Britain. He said: "I am determined that we will fight a campaign which concentrates on real solutions to the real problems that people face in Britain everyday. Our policies would make Britain better, fairer, safer. What they demonstrate is that the Liberal Democrats are the real alternative to Labour and the Conservatives. Increasingly, I believe it's an alternative that people really want."

Commenting on the launch of the Liberal Democrats proposals, Fraser Kemp, Labour's campaign spokesperson, said: "The Liberal Democrats continue to make promises and do absolutely nothing to address the confusion at the heart of their tax and spending plans. They have made over 100 separate spending commitments during this Parliament with no idea as to how they would be paid for. Until they tell us where the money is coming from to pay for their endless list of tax and spending commitments no one will take seriously any pledge they make. The simple truth is that the Liberal Democrats' pledge list is yet another list of empty promises."

Mr Kemp added: "The only thing a vote for the Lib Dems would guarantee is letting Michael Howard into No. 10 through the back door."

(KmcA/MB)