Vince Cable Visits Camborne and Redruth

2.30.00pm GMT Mon 1st Mar 2010

Julia and Vince out on the doorstep in Camborne

Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Vince Cable visited Camborne on Saturday to knock on doors and meet local people with MP Julia Goldsworthy.

Dr Cable was visiting Camborne to support Julia's election campaign, and to launch the Lib Dems' strategy for creating economic growth in Cornwall. After chatting to residents on the doorstep in Camborne town centre, Dr Cable went on to outline his ideas for economic growth at a dinner for Lib Dem supporters at the Penventon Hotel in Redruth.

Speaking to around 100 guests after the dinner, he described Britain as "like a patient that has had a massive heart attack" due to the banking crisis, and warned that further difficulties lay ahead as Government spending started to slow down over the next few months. He said businesses all over the country were struggling because banks were still refusing to lend to them, causing a negative knock-on effect on jobs and industry.

Dr Cable, the Lib Dem Treasury Spokesman, said it was crucial to make the banks to start lending to business again on reasonable rates of credit. But he said the tax system must also be made fairer, by reducing taxes for people on low pay to encourage work and thrift.

He said: "The Liberal Democrats believe that no one should pay tax on the first £10,000 they earn. For a lot of people in Cornwall that would mean they pay no tax at all, and the average Cornish worker would be £700 better off.

"We believe this is the fairest and most effective way to encourage people to work and save in order to reduce our massive public deficit."

He said these tax cuts should be paid for by increasing tax on expensive property, so that those who owned houses worth £2 million or more should pay a levy. Dr Cable said: "This is not about punishing people because they are rich. It is about sorting out our national debt in the fairest possible way."

He said the Conservatives did not understand the problem, and proposed to make sharp and immediate spending cuts that would make the deficit worse.

"They are ideologically committed to making spending cuts, but it is the wrong thing to do," he said. "We need to take steps that are workable and fair, to ensure that our society remains intact."

After his speech, Dr Cable gave a demonstration of his famed ballroom dancing skills as he waltzed with his wife Rachel.

Julia said: "We are very honoured to have Vince here in the constituency. As one of the country's leading authorities on the economy, it has been great to have him here, meeting people and outlining the fairest way of getting the country out of the present crisis that the Government created."