"Forward-thinking" Manifesto launched by Lib Dems

4.30.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Thu 14th Apr 2005

Kathy Pollard, the Liberal Democrats parliamentary candidate for South Suffolk, has welcomed the measures in her party's General Election manifesto, particularly the prominence given to green policies, policing and health.

Speaking after today's launch, Ms Pollard said:

"We must act fast. Charles Kennedy is right when he says time is not on our side. We're particularly keen in Suffolk to tackle environmental issues. We oppose government plans to add another runway at Stansted, which will further increase CO2 emissions. As an agricultural region we also need to look at the opportunities to produce greener energy via bio-mass products e.g. biodiesel."

Commenting on the party's plans to provide free personal care for the elderly and £100 on the basic state pension for the over 75s Ms Pollard said:

"This is especially good news for us in Suffolk with its growing numbers of elderly residents. It's also important that they and the rest of the community feel safe in their own homes. That's why we need to increase the police presence on our streets, by cutting police paperwork and recruiting an extra 10,000 police nationally, supported by an additional 20,000 Community Support officers. Too many people tell us that they seldom see a police officer.

On the issue of health, the huge deficits in the budgets of the hospital and primary care trusts must be addressed as a matter of urgency. Clinical staff should be freed to set priorities for care, instead of having constantly to respond to government led targets. Liberal Democrats will allocate an extra £500 million to dental services, bringing an influx of 1000 dentists..

I believe the policies set out today really do give people in Suffolk a real alternative."