A Green Road out of the Recession

People are returning to work, the sales in the shops are coming to their end and despite the very cold weather everything is returning to normal. But is it? Sadly this is not the case this year. The bubble of rising prices and spending money obtained by credit has burst. Shops and businesses are closing. This is happening both nationally and locally.

The steps which Gordon Brown and his Labour government have made to take us out of this recession are not working.

Whilst the reduction in interest rates is good news for those with a mortgage to pay those who rely on investment of savings to provide an income or top up a low pension are seeing a substantial fall in income. This particularly affects the large number of retired people here in Bexhill and Battle.

Both Labour and the Conservatives are of course aware of this but the proposals which they have put forward are either insufficient, insubstantial or even ineffective.

What we need is not Gordon Brown's token tax cuts in VAT but real permanent tax cuts for ordinary families, funded by closing loopholes and unfair exemptions that benefit big business and the wealthy.

David Cameron's plans to scrap taxes paid by basic rate taxpayers on savings interest and raise the level of non-taxable income for pensioners by 2,000 a year means very little. Someone saving 100 will only get an extra 40p a year. Neither does he say where the cuts in funding will come from in order to make the tax cuts.

Liberal Democrats however have developed fully costed proposals to take us out of the recession. These proposals will not only provide environmentally sound new jobs, money in people's pockets from saving energy but also an improved public transport network.

The proposals to provide the necessary tax cuts also provide a vital fiscal stimulus to the economy. By cancelling the VAT cut, the 12.5bn, which it will cost, can provide a package of investment, creating jobs and giving us something to show for the money borrowed once the recession is over.

The proposals are to fund insulation and energy efficiency in two million homes and to start a five year programme to insulate every school and hospital. Purchase of new train carriages, electrification of national rail lines together with reopening of old lines and other track and signal improvements will be of benefit not only to the national system but to the poor infrastructure here in the south east.

Building of new zero-carbon social homes will provide jobs for the hard hit construction industry and help rebuild the social housing safety net which will be essential when the predicted repossessions start.

Finally funding the installation of smart meters will help homeowners save money.

Liberal Democrats argue that the 12.bn could be spent this year, bringing an immediate effect on the economy in a green and sustainable way.

These measures will bring relief to those who are already suffering hardship as the result of the recession and will help to ensure that we are able to continue to wish each other a Happy New Year.