BBC NEWS | In Depth | Party policies at a glance

BBC NEWS | In Depth | Party policies at a glance

Here is a guide showing where the UK's three main parties stand on 11 key issues - it will be updated as new policies are announced.


LABOUR
Conference
in-depth


CONSERVATIVE
Conference
in-depth


LIB DEMS
Conference
in-depth

TAX/ ECONOMY

Labour: Takes credit for low mortgage rates, more jobs; would reform the "unsustainable" council tax; say spending plans affordable without tax rises; tax reliefs for "hard working families".

Conservatives: Would prevent "Labour third term tax rises"; will use £4bn to cut taxes although not saying which yet - however say inheritance tax, council tax and stamp duty are unfair.

Liberal Democrat: Would replace council tax with a local income tax; new 50% tax rate on earnings over £100,000 a year; no new business regulations without impact assessment.

EDUCATION

Labour: Parents able to select specialist school; 200 new City Academies; new powers against disruptive pupils; university top-up fees up to £3,000, with £3,000 help for poorest students.

Conservative: 600,000 new school places to boost choice; allow good schools to expand and new ones created; heads able to expel disruptive pupils; no student fees - new loans instead.

Liberal Democrat: Cut class sizes for youngest children; ensure all children are taught by a qualified teacher in each subject; abolish "unnecessary tests"; scrap university fees.

PENSIONS

Labour: Use benefits savings to design system with basic state pension at core; state pension age stays same; lump sums/higher payments for those working longer; special help for poorest.

Conservative: Restore link between state pension and earnings by replacing New Deal; fund free long-term residential care via three-year state sponsored insurance scheme.

Liberal Democrat: Boost basic state pension by £25 a week and restore pensions-earnings link for over-75s; link pension to residency not national insurance payments; free long-term personal care.

CRIME

Labour: Dedicated policing teams for every area; record police numbers already; plans total of 25,000 community support officers; 1,300 more prison places; double cash for drug treatment.

Conservative: 40,000 extra police; 10-fold rise in drug rehab places; addicts to choose rehab or prison; end some early releases; 20,000 more prison places; judges to set min and max sentences.
Liberal Democrat: 10,000 extra police; tackle drug dealers rather than cannabis users; out-of-hours school courses against yob culture; local communities decide sentences for low level criminals.
HEALTH

Labour: Patients able to choose their NHS hospital; waiting times down to 18 weeks; 100 new hospital schemes; 2,700 GMP premises to be improved; no "cut price" hospital cleaning contracts

Conservative: Patients able to choose hospital or take 50% of NHS operation price to go private; cleaner hospitals; Whitehall targets scrapped; dentists paid differently to help keep them in NHS.

Liberal Democrat: Earmark NI contributions solely for the NHS; local investment to be set by locally elected people; healthy cookery lessons in schools to help prevent obesity.
EUROPE

Labour: Want adoption of proposed EU constitution after referendum; support joining the single currency if five economic tests show it is in UK interests; UK should be at "heart" of Europe.

Conservative: Oppose EU constitution and would hold early vote; would let other nations integrate while UK gets powers back over fishing and quits social chapter; oppose adopting euro.

Liberal Democrat: Would work towards the right conditions for joining the euro and then call referendum; back EU constitution, saying it will make clear the limits on Brussels powers.
IRAQ/ DEFENCE

Labour: Stand by Iraq war - even if weapons intelligence was wrong, Saddam flouted UN resolutions; extra £3.7bn on defence over three years to modernise armed forces, shedding 20,000 posts.

Conservative: Still back Iraq war but say Tony Blair lied over the intelligence; pledge £2.7bn more on front line defence than Labour over the next 3 years, saving historic regiments.
Liberal Democrat: Opposed Iraq war and demand Blair reveal when he promised to commit UK forces; would start phased withdrawal of troops after Iraqi polls; worry troop cuts will affect peacekeeping.
TRANSPORT

Labour: Spending in 2015 to be 60% up on 1997; rail reorganisation so ministers set strategy and Network Rail owns all track; road building but car sharing lanes/road use charge plans too.

Conservative: Expand roads/speed up repairs; remove speed cameras which only make money; give best rail firms longer contracts; use retailers to fund improving train stations.
Liberal Democrat: High-speed rail link through central England; no major new roads unless absolute benefits; more congestion charges; free off-peak local travel for pensioners/disabled people.
ENVIRONMENT

Labour: Signed up to Kyoto and 60% target for cutting greenhouse emissions by 2050; tax incentives for fuel efficient cars; backing research into hydrogen powered vehicles.

Conservative: "Better leadership" on Kyoto targets; make fly-tipping arrestable offence; push tidal, wave and offshore wind power; use taxes to make greenest fuels cheaper; protect green fields.
Liberal Democrat: Lead by example by meeting Kyoto targets; ensure 20% of UK electricity is from renewable sources by 2020; get 60% of household waste recycled by 2010.
FAMILIES

Labour: "Universal, affordable and flexible" childcare for parents of all 3 to 14 year-olds; a Sure Start children's centre in every area; faster child custody hearings with access orders better enforced.

Conservative: Due to unveil childcare policies soon - would continue Sure Start centres but give parents more choice; presumption in favour of shared parenting when couples separate.
Liberal Democrat: Establish Early Years Centres, giving parenting advice, play areas and pre-school education; child's interests to come first in custody cases - no presumption in favour of mothers.
ASYLUM/ IMMIGRATION

Labour: Will reduce asylum numbers by tougher rules on settlement and more deportations; electronic register of all crossing borders; skills-based points system for permanent immigrants.
Conservative: Annual quotas for refugees and other migrants entering Britain; would create offshore asylum processing centres; pull Britain out of UN refugee convention.
Liberal Democrat: Back common EU asylum policy with fair sharing of asylum settlement; allow asylum seekers to work so don't rely on benefits; quota for immigrant workers from outside EU.


Labour website
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites
Conservative website
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites
Liberal Democrats party website
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites

BBC NEWS | Politics | Immigration to be election issue

BBC NEWS | Politics | Immigration to be election issue

BBC NEWS
Immigration to be election issue
Analysis
By Nick Assinder
Political Correspondent, BBC News website

Immigration and asylum have normally been issues politicians from the big parties have tiptoed around at election time.

But no longer. Both Labour and the Tories have signalled their intention of making them central to their election campaigns.

They have been struck by the level of concern amongst voters about the issues, with internal surveys showing they have the potential to swing large numbers of votes.

That was also true at the last general election and the issue did briefly become a campaigning issue.

But it sparked the probably predictable furore with claims politicians were either stoking up xenophobia or, alternatively, running scared of addressing the problem.

But this time around it looks set to be one of the core battlegrounds with both the big parties competing to set out tough policies.

Too little

The Tories are already committed to imposing annual limits on immigration, with a quota for asylum seekers and with applications processed outside the UK.

Labour has already branded the proposal unworkable but party strategists have seen the Tories seizing a poll advantage over the issue.

Now Home Secretary Charles Clarke has come up with alternative proposals for a points system to ensure only immigrants who can benefit the economy will be granted entry, and to kick out more failed asylum seekers.

That has been attacked by the Tories as too little, too late and for failing to tackle the key issue of the numbers entering the UK.

The Liberal Democrats have not been drawn too deeply into the argument but have called for a Europe-wide policy on immigration.

Far right

But, while all the parties appear to agree the time has come to properly debate and address the issue, there are already signs they will run into precisely the same problems as before.

Former union leader Sir Bill Morris has already accused both the big parties of engaging in a "bidding war about who can be nastiest to asylum seekers".

"My concern is that, whilst the Labour Party and the Conservative Party will take a constructive approach to the debate, right-wing political parties, picking up on statements like `burden to Britain' will exploit this and create a lot of fear and uncertainty".

It is precisely that concern - and the possible suggestion the issue is playing to the far right's racist agenda - that will provoke strong reactions from many concerned with this issue.

The challenge for the big parties is to ensure they can engage in the debate during the cut and thrust of a general election while also avoiding that trap.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk_politics/4242451.stm

Published: 2005/02/07 13:32:18 GMT

© BBC MMV

BBC NEWS | Politics | Tories unveil new crime proposals

BBC NEWS
Tories unveil new crime proposals
Criminals would serve full sentences and more prisons would be built under plans unveiled by the Conservatives.

Michael Howard said his policies would combat the public perception of sentencing in courts being a "charade".

The Tory leader said: "Prison sends a powerful message to those outside prison: crime doesn't pay."

Labour says the Tories have not shown how they would pay for their proposals on prisons. The Lib Dems say the prison works message is a "con".

The Tories made their crime plans, which include 5,000 more police a year, the focus of a newspaper advertisement on Sunday.

Much of the package has been unveiled before but the party is now giving more details, with Mr Howard saying crime is "out of control".

The new system will also help improve discipline in prisons because they will not be automatically released early
Conservative spokesman

Judges would set a minimum sentence - to be served in full - and a maximum to be served by those still considered a threat.

Under the current system, criminals sentenced to four years or less are required to serve at least half of their term.

Those sentenced to more than four years serve at least two-thirds of their time.

'Clear message'

The Tories would also end early releases for prisoners' current "home detention curfew scheme".

Mr Howard said on Monday that more than 3,500 crimes have been committed by criminals let out early - and 500 of them were violent crimes.

He said burglars should automatically be jailed for three years if caught for a third time and drug dealers get seven years for a third office.

To have any credibility in this area the Tories must explain how they would pay for their prison places policy
Labour spokesman

Mr Howard said: "That will send a clear message: if you can't do the time, don't do the crime."

He accused Labour of setting an "arbitrary limit" of 80,000 prison places - while his party would provide an extra 20,000 places.

"Build more prisons and fewer criminals will be free to commit crime," said Mr Howard.

"It's common sense. It's how I will cut crime."

Criminologist David Wilson, from the University of Central England, said the UK already had the largest prison population in Europe.

And 90% of those on the early release curfew scheme did not reoffend before the end of their sentence, he said.

'More transparent'

Labour said prison should only be for "the most serious, dangerous and persistent offenders".

Home Office Minister Hazel Blears said: "The Conservative pledge on prison places would cost £760m on their own figures, but the Tories cannot say how they would fund this pledge

"Labour has already provided 17,000 extra prison places, with 3,000 more opening shortly. Labour also believes in prison being for the most serious, dangerous and persistent offenders."

Liberal Democrat spokesman Mark Oaten said Mr Howard was "conning" the public with his "prison works" message, which pandered to a right-wing agenda.

"With over half of prisoners reoffending, creating even more prisoners will just create more criminals," he said.

Nacro - the national crime reduction charity - said Tories would be better spending money on more measures to prevent crime, support victims and alternatives to prison.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk_politics/4240443.stm

Published: 2005/02/07 16:55:42 GMT

© BBC MMV