THE recent letter from local Conservatives, ?Local Income tax is bad news?, distorts Liberal Democrat policy on the issue.
Liberal Democrats are not proposing any increase in the level of local taxation. We plan to abolish the extremely unfair council tax, and replace it with the much fairer system of local income tax, which is based on ability to pay.
The majority of people would be better off. Pensioners and others on low incomes, who have been hit so hard by council tax rises this year, would particularly benefit, and because local income tax is considerably cheaper to collect than the council tax, the overall level of taxation could actually go down rather than up.
As for regional government, Liberal Democrats support the plan to hold a referendum before any proposal can go ahead. If regional government is endorsed, that would entail the abolition of a tier of local government.
This would not therefore mean increasing the tax burden at all.
The Conservatives cannot be taken seriously as a party prepared to change unless they reconsider their opposition to local income tax. Having invented first the poll tax then the council tax, they have a great deal to live down.
David Walter
Liberal Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate for Torridge and West Devon
Cllr Alison Clish-Green
Leader, West Devon Liberal Democrat Group