Message from Brian Watkins

3.03.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 30th Apr 2008

Vote Lib Dem!

Brian Watkins, Leader of the Norwich Liberal Democrats, outlines why the Lib Dems deserve your vote in the city council elections.

"The Liberal Democrats have a bold, imaginative and ambitious set of policy proposals for Norwich. Policies that will strengthen local communities and reach out to people who feel their voice is ignored and their concerns dismissed.

"We want a fairer tax system and improved public services to guarantee residents get value for money.

"Council Tax is unfair and disproportionately punishes pensioners and working families. Short-term we will keep it low (lower than Labour's 3.7% rise) and in the long-term we will replace it with a fairer local income tax that is based on people's ability to pay.

"We are campaigning locally and nationally against the abolition of the 10p tax rate. The removal of this rate will make 5.3 million low earners worse off. We are unconvinced that Gordon Brown's desperate u-turn will fully compensate those who have lost out.

"Improving the financial efficiency of City Hall will be a priority, and we will ensure that taxpayers' money is spent on front-line services not wasted on spin and PR.

"To cut crime we want more Police and PCSOs (Police Community Support Officers) on the street. Locally this will be achieved by ending any areas of duplication between PCSOs and Community Wardens which currently sees taxpayers paying twice for the same service. Nationally we are campaigning to scrap the government's £6 billion ID card scheme and divert that money into getting more police on the street.

"We want to see a targeted use of CCTV in residential areas and we support the creation of Community Justice Panels.

"We will continue to take the lead in ensuring environmental and road safety by opposing a new waste incinerator plant in Norfolk and campaigning for a 20mph speed limit in all residential areas. We will continue to push for improvements to public transport, extend the cycle network around Norwich and defend bus and cycle lanes.

"We recognise the need for a strong and diverse local economy and support the development of the tourism and cultural sectors. Future growth around the city is both an opportunity and a threat, and it must be planned with great care and sensitivity and involve proper public consultation.

"We are campaigning to save local post offices and we are the only party to have a costed and detailed policy on saving branches and increasing investment in the network. We want to end the needless sell-off of school playing fields and stop the cuts in GP out-of-hours services.

"Our proposals will open up democracy and give people a greater voice they include, having a youth mayor and youth council, local public scrutiny panels that monitor the performance of all public services, a participatory budget so local people decide where money is spent and new mechanisms at City Hall allowing the public to "call in" decisions they disagree with and force the council to think again.

"The Liberal Democrats will put the needs of Norwich first at all times and I call on voters to give us their backing on Thursday."

Cllr Brian Watkins

Norwich Liberal Democrat Leader