(Click picture to play video)

It is shameful that, despite all the promise on a four or five year old’s first day at school, or the passion of their teachers, you can all too often plot that child’s path just by asking how much their parents earn.

The £2.5billion Pupil Premium was one of the four pledges on the front page of our manifesto.  And now, with Liberal Democrats in government, schools are using the money for things like breakfast clubs; homework clubs; or to provide one-to-one-tuition. These are the sort of experiences many middle class children take for granted but a poorer child might rarely enjoy.

Yesterday I visited a fantastic primary school to see how they are spending their Pupil Premium, highlight our new Summer Schools to ease the transition from primary to secondary, and to set out our plans to reward teachers and hold schools to account.

The Pupil Premium shows that, in tough times, we are implementing Liberal Democrat values and prioritising help for those pupils who need it most.

Best wishes,

Nick Clegg MP

Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister

PS Click here to find out how much money your local school will receive from the Liberal Democrats’ Pupil Premium.

This week, Paul Burstow (Liberal Democrat minister at the Department of Health) has launched a national £4 million lung cancer awareness campaign. The campaign, the first of its kind, will use TV, radio and press adverts, and advertising on pharmacist bags and inside GP surgeries, to raise awareness of the disease.

One of its aims is to persuade anyone who has had a cough for more than three weeks to see their doctor.

You can find more information about coughing and lung cancer at the Department of Health website, here: http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/2012/05/coughing-could-be-a-sign-of-lung-cancer-2/

With 33,000 new cases diagnosed each year, lung cancer is a blight on the lives of far too many of our families and an early diagnosis can make all the difference. Please take the opportunity of the Be Clear on Cancer campaign to find out more about prevention and diagnosis, and to visit your local doctor if you’ve had a persistent cough – it is always better to be safe than sorry!

http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/tag/be-clear-on-cancer/

Official reports have confirmed that no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has increased council tax for their residents. This is unlike both other major parties, many of which are increasing council tax by up to 3.5% this year.

Commenting on Labour and Conservative councils’ record on Council Tax, Liberal Democrat Party President, Tim Farron said:

“While Labour and the Tories fight over how many of their councils raised Council Tax, it’s clear that with the Liberal Democrats your money is safest: no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has raised Council Tax.

“Ordinary working families are struggling already with paying bills, without their councils increasing the burden.

“The choice in next month’s elections is clear: vote Liberal Democrat for financially responsible councils that create jobs. Vote Labour and the Tories for waste, mismanagement and tax rises.”

As well as freezing council tax across the country, Liberal Democrat councils are protecting front-line services, fighting to keep libraries and Sure Start centres open. This is in addition to the achievements of the Liberal Democrats in government, which after the Budget include a £130 income tax cut for all working families, the largest-ever rise in the basic state pension, an increase in child tax credits for the poorest families, and an increase in the Lib Dem Pupil Premium to £600 for every pupil receiving Free School Meals.

At every level of government, the Liberal Democrats are cutting taxes for low- and middle-earners and better targeting help to those that need it the most. It is a record of financial responsibility of which we can be proud.

A first look at part of this week’s Liberal Democrat Local Election Broadcast. This clip looks at our key pledge to cut taxes for working families, and celebrates the fact that Liberal Democrats in government have achieved:

• The biggest-ever single uplift in the tax-free personal allowance
• A £3.5 billion tax cut for working men and women
• 840,000 of the lowest earners in the country lifted completely out of paying Income Tax

Next year, the allowance increases again (to £9,205) – within touching distance of our manifesto promise to increase the Income Tax threshold to £10,000.

These are all significant achievements that are already making a difference for millions of hard-working men and women across Britain. Real change for real families in tough times – promised and delivered by the Liberal Democrats.

We can be proud that the biggest tax cuts in today’s Budget go to millions of working families.

As a result of this Budget, someone working a full week on minimum wage will see their income tax bill cut by over 50% compared to under Labour.

Increasing the personal allowance to £9,205 takes us within touching distance of our number one manifesto pledge – ensuring no one pays any tax on the first £10,000 they earn.

Thanks to our changes, a basic rate taxpayer will be paying £45 a month less in tax than they would have been under Labour.

We can be proud that we’ve ensured the richest in our society will be paying more, much more.

The Tycoon Tax, an increase in stamp duty for high value properties and other new taxes on wealth will raise five times as much as the 50p tax rate. Those with annual incomes of more than £150,000 a year will be paying on average an additional £1,300 a year in tax, as a result of this Budget.

Of course, this is a Coalition Budget and we did not get our own way on everything. Conservative priorities are not ours. But as on so many other issues, we have made sure that there is a real Liberal Democrat stamp on this Budget.

Lower taxes for more than 20 million working people; effective new taxes on the rich.

This is a Budget we can be proud of – a Budget for the many, not the few.

Best wishes,

2012 is going to show the best of Britain. With the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee, we’ll be celebrating our past but with our face to the future and the change it will bring. In Government, the Liberal Democrats are at the heart of that change.

Of course, times are tough. Families are under pressure, worried about paying their bills. That’s why we’re cutting tax for working people while calling time on the tycoon tax dodgers.

From next month, 25 million working people will have more money in their pocket, because of us. You can help spread the word about our £60 tax cut by clicking here.

Going green is not a luxury for the good times – Liberals have always fought to protect the environment, and that’s why we’re part of the greenest government this country has ever had. Not only are we making the right choices for the environment, we’re putting green policies at the heart of our economic recovery.

This is a liberal nation with liberal values; hard work, fair play and a sense of freedom. I’m proud that the Liberal Democrats in Government are repairing Labour’s industrial-scale destruction of that liberty.

Just think for a moment what we’ll have achieved by 2015. The first gay marriage, and end to child detention and the first elections to the House of Lords, to name just three.

These are just some clips from the speech Nick Clegg MP,  Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister made to the Gateshead Lib Dem conference, for the text of his full speech click here.

The Liberal Democarst have today tabled amendments to the ruling Labour Group’s Council budget for 2012/13, that would divert £3.8m of wasteful spending towards frontline services.  The amendments would mean that vital services which were cut last year by Labour could be reinstated, with money being made available for youth and older people’s service, parks, Children’s Centres and fighting crime – as well as a freeze in Labour ‘stealth tax’ increases in parking and other charges

The amendments, which have been formally approved by the Council’s head of finance, intend to target Labour’s waste by proposing to cap communications spending, cut subsidies to fund trade union rents, reduce IT funding and vacant council posts, and make the Council stick to its own policies on car allowances and middle management.

Liberal Democrats have said that despite government funding reductions the Labour Council continues to waste scarce resources and would seek to blame central government rather than taking the hard decisions necessary to root out wasteful spending.

The amendments will be discussed and voted on at the meeting of the Full council on 28th February 2012.

Cllr Paul Strang, Liberal Democrat Resources Spokesperson, comments:

“We have identified £3.8million of extra waste in order to increase funding for front-line and much needed services like our £1million youth fund and money to reopen Children’s Centres.

“Ensuring that the Council sticks to its own car allowance policy and middle management target alone means that the Council could save £872,000 – but Labour is failing to root out waste.

“Instead they seem determined to close front-line services and blame anyone but themselves. However, it is only our residents that suffer from their poor decisions.

“Despite their claims that central government have cut their funding too far and too fast, Haringey Labour cut their budget last year by £4m more than they needed too, with £3m of this year’s budget not actually being spent and over £1m going into an unspecified politically motivated pot. This is after they chose instead to cut children centres, youth services and older people’s drop-in centres, and now they propose hiking service charges by up to 40%.”

Cllr Richard Wilson, Haringey Liberal Democrat Leader, adds:

“I’m glad that the Liberal Democrats have put up a fully-costed and approved set of amendments which show that we want to reopen Children’s Centres, look after our older people better and trust local people to have real control over their money.

“Labour has numerous one-off funds next year, including their £1.2million slush fund but our financial plan gives a sustainable future to front-line services Labour has decided to reduce.

“I urge Labour members to adopt these amendments to their budget.”

To see the full details of the Liberal Democrat budget amendments link the link below

Liberal Democrat budget amendments 2012

Times are tough, families are under pressure, worried about paying their bills. That’s why the Lib Dems are cutting tax for working people while calling time on the tycoon tax dodgers.

From next month, 25 million working people will have more money in their pocket, because of the Liberal Democrats. Watch the video and help spread the word about our £60 tax cut by clicking here.