1000's of Axe the Tax petitions taken to Downing Street (Surrey Heath Liberal Democrats

Surrey Heath Liberal Democrats - working for you, for a better future <info@surreyheathlibdems.org.uk>

1000's of Axe the Tax petitions taken to Downing Street

May 17, 2004 11:33 AM

Rosalyn Harper, Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson for Surrey Heath and Sue Doughty Lib Dem MP for Guildford took 1,000s of petitions, many of them from residents in Surrey Heath, calling for Council Tax to be abolished, and replaced by a fairer system based on ability to pay to 10 Downing Street on Tuesday 11th May.

They joined Edward Davey MP, who is spearheading the Liberal Democrats' national Axe the Tax campaign, and other Liberal Democrat campaigners, in presenting over 35,000 signatures to 10 Downing Street.

This follows a recent Axe the Tax event in Camberley Town Centre, where Local Liberal Democrat campaigners conducted a local opinion poll and collected several hundred signatures and a visit by Edward Davey to the area as part of his barnstorming campaign.

On top of that, hundreds of households throughout Camberley, Frimley, Lightwater, Bagshot and Ash had individually sent back petition slips from local Liberal Democrat newspapers and via our website.

Rosalyn Harper said:

"Council Tax is unfair to those on fixed incomes such as pensioners, and those on low incomes, as it does not reflect ability to pay. It's becoming increasingly clear that it's got to go!

"It is based on 1991 valuations of house prices, so it's well out of date. It's also very costly to collect, costing two-thirds of a billion pounds last year alone. It is time the Government listened to what the people of this country are telling them about this, and many other, issues!"

"The response to the petition was phenomenal. People were signing up from all over the constituency and the rest of the country."

"Only the Liberal Democrats are campaigning to scrap council tax, and only the Liberal Democrats have a positive alternative. Council tax is now Britain's most unfair tax and it's time it was replaced with a fair tax related to people's ability to pay."

Further Information:

A new Local Income Tax, set at an average of 3.75p would be levied to replace Council Tax. Based on people's real ability to pay, the move would mean tax cuts for millions of pensioners and ordinary families. Mr Kennedy, launching the new proposals with Liberal Democrat ODPM Shadow Edward Davey said the new Local Income Tax would leave 70% of households either better off or unaffected.

The Local Income Tax plans include:

1. A tax free personal allowance of at least £5,000 on implementation

2. No rise in the overall tax burden

3. A cap on income subject to local income tax at £100,000

4. Using the Inland Revenue to assess and collect local income tax

5. Estimated savings of over £300 million a year on bureaucracy

More information can be found on:

www.axe-the-tax.org.uk

www.surreyheathlibdems.org.uk