Lib Dems manifesto pledges fairness

The Liberal Democrats have pledged to "hard wire fairness" into British society through reform of the tax system, Nick Clegg has said at the launch of the party's manifesto.

Clegg outlined their key policies, including raising the state pension and armed forces pay, and said voters can trust his party.

Launching his policy programme, the Liberal Democrat leader said: "I believe every single person is extraordinary and the tragedy is we have a society where too many people don't get to fulfil that extraordinary potential."

He said that his party offers a real alternative to Labour and the Conservatives and he pledged to "sort out our rotten political system once and for all", if voters back him on May 6.

"Our manifesto will hardwire fairness into British society," he told an audience in the City of London. "This is not a promise. It is a plan."

The 109-page document details the "four steps to a fairer Britain" - fair taxes, more chances for children, a fairer and greener economy, and cleaning up politics.

"We can turn anger into hope, frustration into ambition, recession into opportunity for everyone," Clegg said.

The party leader insisted there isn't "a line in this book that we haven't accounted for by savings elsewhere".

He added that he believes it's the first time a political party has ever produced a manifesto with figures as comprehensive as those contained in the document.

The four steps include fairer taxes including the promise to raise the income tax threshold to £10,000 paid for by closing loopholes exploited by the wealthy.

Economic reform would include the breaking up of giant banks, separating their investment and High Street operations, investment in infrastructure and "honesty" about the "tough choices" to cut the deficit.

And constitutional changes that will include the power to sack MPs, reform of the electoral system, an elected House of Lords and a Freedom Bill to restore civil liberties.

Clegg concluded: "If you've ever looked at the Lib Dems and thought, 'they've got the right ideas, but can they deliver?' This manifesto is the answer. We can. We will."

Lib Dem Treasury spokesperson Vince Cable delivered the opening remarks. He said, "I guess I'm the elephant man," with the economy being the "the elephant in the room" that both Labour and the Tories have "banished" from their manifestos.

He said the other two parties are doing their "best impersonations of Father Christmas", but that isn’t "plausible" or "honest".

The emphasis on the economy was made clear by the choice of venue, the offices of financial newswire Bloomberg in the City of London.

The Liberal Democrats are the last of the three main parties to publish their general election manifesto, following on from Labour and the Conservatives.

Both of the other parties had questioned how the Liberal Democrats would be able to fund their tax proposals.