National Issues

For further information on the Conservative campaign and to see the General Election Manifesto please visit conservatives.com.

Click here to download the Conservative Research Department's Key Facts document, updated 30th March 2005.  (PDF, 145kB)

Conservatives to Halve Council Tax Bills for Pensioners over 65

Under Mr Blair’s Government, council tax bills have gone through the roof. Since 2001, bills on the Island have risen by nearly 50% - equivalent to 8 times the rate of inflation. Pensioners, on fixed incomes, have been hit the hardest by this stealth tax, with the hike in council tax snatching back over a third of the increase in the basic state pension for a typical pensioner. To make matters worse, if it keeps going up at the current rate, experts predict bills will hit £2,000 for the typical household if Mr Blair wins a third term in power.

Smaller Government

Andrew's success at representing the largest constituency in the UK with over 100,000 electors has helped the Conservative Party develop proposals to cut the size of Government.  A smaller Government Bill would cut the number of MPs from 659 to around 530 and the over-representation of Scotland at Westminster would be dealt with by cutting the number of MPs from 72 to 46.  This would have the effect of ensuring that each elector accross the country was equally represented at Westminster.

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