Over 20 million working people will be better off next year after Liberal Democrats in the Coalition Government delivered the biggest ever increase in the income tax personal allowance in the Budget.
The massive £3.5bn tax cut for working people delivers:
The biggest ever single uplift in the tax threshold
A personal allowance of £9,205 in April 2013
21 million working people getting an extra £220 tax cut
Brings the total tax cut for basic rate tax payers to £550
Brings the total number of people lifted out of tax to 2 million.
Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg used his speech to the Party's Spring conference in NewcastleGateshead to call for the forthcoming budget to be a "budget for fairness" and pledged that it would help working familes.
The Deputy Prime Minister pledged that by 2015 Britain would have seen an end to control orders, the first gay marriages and the first elections to the House of Lords.
Fairer taxes, promoting green jobs, protecting your civil liberties - these are just some of the achievements of the Liberal Democrats in government.
We're building a freer, greener and more liberal country - and stopping some of the worst excesses of the Conservatives. Find out more in this infographic.
In his keynote speech to the Liberal Democrat Conference, Party Leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has outlined his goals for the Government and the country over the coming years. He reiterated his commitment to liberal values on the environment and human rights and his determination to ensure a fair chance for every child, saying "every child can do good things, great things, if only we give them the opportunities they deserve."
On 5th May you have a choice. You can keep the discredited First Past the Post system to elect our MPs, or you can choose a new and fairer system - Alternative Vote (AV). Back the campaign for change at www.YesToFairerVotes.org
East Devon is Liberal Democrat territory. At the previous 3 general elections we have polled 30% and increased our share of the vote. With the revised boundaries we aim to break through 45% at this election, and the next, and the next. It may also be that a close general election will lead to a rerun quite soon!
Replying to EU Development Aid Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva at an extraordinary committee meeting in the European Parliament in Brussels today, SW LD MEP Graham Watson said:
'The EU must find ways of getting aid faster to those in need. Europe has responded generously to the humanitarian disaster in Pakistan, but money committed needs to be disbursed faster to help those in need.
South West MEP Graham Watson has vowed to continue fighting for those constituents still awaiting reimbursement from airlines for costs incurred during the ash cloud disruption in April.
Under EU rules, passengers left stranded after a flight is cancelled are entitled to accommodation, refreshments and assistance in reaching their final destination. However, following the chaos, many are still out of pocket to the tune of hundreds of pounds, with some airlines refusing to pay up.
At present only 0.01% of electricity in England is generated by local authority-owned renewables, despite the scope that exists to install projects on their land and buildings. In Germany the equivalent figure is 100 times higher.
At present local authorities are able to put any renewable electricity they generate to local use, and to benefit from the associated feed-in tariff for projects smaller than 5MW. But they are restricted from selling any excess renewable electricity into the grid.
Commenting on Labour's decision to oppose legislation for a referendum on the alternative vote, which was a commitment in their manifesto, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader, Simon Hughes said:
"This is staggering hypocrisy from Labour.
"Labour's shadow cabinet decision is not about principle, it is about naked opportunism.
