Prime Minister Launches Conservative Election Manifesto In Swindon

Prime Minister & Conservative Party leader, David Cameron, has joined members of the Cabinet, and local candidates Justin Tomlinson & Robert Buckland for the launch of the party's national manifesto in Swindon.

The launch, held at the new £10 million Universal Technical College, saw hundreds of local supporters including teachers, business owners and students.  During the event, senior members of the Cabinet highlighted the successes of Conservatives in Government.  Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan, noted that one million more young people across the country are now being taught in good or outstanding schools and pledged to go further, while Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, highlighted the success of halving the budget deficit while delivering tax cuts for 30 million working people and taking almost 4 million of lowest paid out of income tax altogether. 

The Prime Minister, launching the manifesto, praised Swindon as a town on the up that was benefitting from the strong, stable, secure management of the economy during the last five years. He announced that a future Conservative government would:

• Raise the tax-free Personal Allowance to £12,500 by 2020 and the higher rate threshold to £50,000
• Increase the minimum wage to more than £8 per hour and take anyone on the minimum wage working 30 hours a week out of tax completely
• Increase NHS funding by £8bn a year, invest £5.3bn in integrating local health and social care and make the NHS a truly seven day a week service
• Build 500 new Free Schools, strengthen rigour in English & Maths and deliver 3 million new apprenticeships
• Extend tax-free childcare for all three and four years olds to 30 hours a week
• Safeguard all pensioner benefits (including the Winter Fuel Allowance, free bus passes and free television licences) and ensure that the State Pension increases every year by at least 2.5%
• Restore the Right to Buy so Housing Association tenants can buy their property, build 200,000 starter homes for young people and extend Help to Buy for five more years
• Freeze rail fares for five years, reform Air Passenger Duty to support families and invest in improved

Justin Tomlinson said: "It was a pleasure to welcome the Prime Minister and the Cabinet to Swindon to launch our national party manifesto. Thanks to the Conservatives, Swindon is a town on the up with unemployment down by more than 60% and over 7,000 since 2010. Our manifesto sets how, with five more years, we will finish the job that we have started - clearing the deficit, cutting taxes and investing in schools, the NHS and tax-free childcare to support hardworking families. All of these proposals set-out in our manifesto will ensure that Swindon remains an economic powerhouse."

Prime Minister, David Cameron, said: "Together with the hard work of the British people we have turned the country around but the next five years a far more important. Britain has been the small country with a big impact and we are on the cusp of being that again. Let's not go back and let Labour drag us back five years."

You can read the Conservative Manifesto here