Fairer Economic Future

6.00.00pm GMT Sun 4th Jan 2009

David Goodall with Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor Vince Cable MP

People today are struggling with spiralling debts, rising food and energy bills and unaffordable mortgages. A decade of complacency by Gordon Brown has meant that with plummeting house prices, falling growth, inflation problems and rising unemployment, the UK economic outlook has not looked so bleak since the 1990's Tory recession. So after the 10p tax fiasco and ineffective 2.5p VAT cut what the economic situation actually demands is a fairer economic future.

Liberal Democrats would:-

• Cut taxes from the bottom up - to help millions of families make ends meet and boost the economy

• Cut wasteful government spending - things like ID cards, industrial subsidies & wasteful IT projects

• Effectively regulate the banking system - to prevent irresponsible lending & business practices

• Invest to make a real difference - with programs to improve the long and short term, for example, insulate schools, hospitals and homes; boost the railways with new carriages, tracks and stations; build 40,000 new zero carbon social houses

• Close tax loopholes - to make big business and the super rich pay their fair share

• Stop the boom/bust housing market - by requiring the Bank of England to take house prices into account when setting interest rates

The governments ineffective answer - a 2.5p VAT cut that benefits the haves more than the have nots.