Vince Cable once again shows why he should be the next chancellor.

I watched with interest the chancellor debates on Sky News and, although I agree with Sky News' that were no knock out blows, what was obvious was ....

1. The only person who had the foresight to spot the recession before it happened was Vince Cable.
2. The only person being honest across all the issues was Vince Cable.
3. The only person who will balance the ever widening gap between rich and poor was Vince Cable.

Sky News said, "Mr Cable appeared to come out on top, the public saying he put in the best performance."

The Mirror (a Labour paper) rated Vince Cable better than Alistair Darling with a 4 rosette rating compared to Darling’s 3.

And according to Channel 4 news Cable is public choice for chancellor.

It is also obvious to me and to so many of the people I talk to that Vince Cable is the best man for the job of chancellor.

So let's hope the sake of this country that he gets the job!

Our commitment to public transport.

As a Liberal Democrat I am totally committed to improving our public transport. It is my belief that central to this is a network of fast rail links between major cities and towns and branch lines into as many small towns as possible. This network would provide a greener and more efficient way of getting passengers and freight around the country.

"All well and good", you may say, "if it was cheaper", well this is exactly what the Liberal Democrats have announced today. We have promised that we will scrap the current formula used by government to determine rail fares, a move that will mean cheaper rail fares for all.

Our key promise is to scrap the current fares formula used by the Government to set the cost of travel for commuters.

Norman Baker, the party's transport spokesman, has also promised passengers who are forced to take replacement buses will get a third of their fare refunded as compensation.

“It is time the Government stopped this train fares escalator that is so unfair on passengers," Mr Baker said.

“Labour has deliberately pushed up rail fares above inflation while the cost of driving and flying has come down."

Earlier this year a Liberal Democrat study showed Britain had the most expensive railway in Europe.

Its research showed that £10 bought a British passenger 23.8 miles of rail travel compared with 35.4 in Germany, 50 in the Netherlands, 59.1 in France and a staggering 391 in Bulgaria.

“Passengers crammed onto commuter trains have been forced to pay inflation-busting fares year after year while train companies rake in multi-million pound profits," said Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader. "It's time for passengers to come first."

It really is time for a change of government, a real change. Don't vote for the same old worn and tired Labour policies or the carefully glossed over and airbrushed policies of the Conservatives.

Vote for a real change.

Vote for the Liberal Democrats.

A dishonest budget

Alistair Darling's sums are already being questioned.

This budget raises more questions than answers about the choices available to voters at the next General Election. Neither Labour or the Tories are being honest about what they will do if they form the next government and to add insult to injury Darling has also sneaked through another tax rise by freezing personal allowances, something spotted immediately by Nick Clegg but spotted later by the Tories [ they were never quick on the uptake ;-) ].

This £50 a year extra burden for the average tax payer when compared to Liberal Democrat plans to increase the allowance to £10,000, taking millions out of tax altogether and making many more £700 a year better off, shows how far away from being the party of the working man that this Labour government has come.

The Liberal Democrats are the party of social justice and honesty on both our financial position and on cleaning up politics.

We are offering a clear alternative to Labour and the Tories.

A vote for change would be a vote for the Liberal Democrats.

Something positive for Gosport.

With all the negativity around in Gosport at the moment, the fall out from the duck house saga, people feeling powerless to do anything about a situation that has made them very angry, I was very pleased to hear a about an idea to get the Olympic Torch to come through Gosport.

Something positive for Gosport.

This is a brilliant idea, I give it my full support and applaud all of those who are trying to make it happen. All too often I hear people anti-this and anti-that, this is a good chance for everyone in Gosport to be pro-something.

Let's get the Olympic Torch to come through Gosport in 2012!

Let's put Gosport on the map for the RIGHT reasons!

Police unable to attend - a story I hear all too often.

This story from The News highlights a major issue for most people, not just in Gosport. Although in Gosport we do seem to have more than our fair share.

Ghost-hunting museum trip reveals night thefts

The level of police cover in Gosport is just not sufficient, add to that the fact that the police cells have been closed during the week in Gosport Police Station meaning that any arrest at this time also incurs a trip to Fareham and it all adds up to criminals getting away.

Most people I speak to have a story about a similar incident, police attending sometimes days after a crime has been reported, meaning that not only have the criminals got away but any evidence left behind is contaminated.

Minor offences are often not even investigated, even when it quite clear who the perpetrators are. The amount of paper work required to process them means that it is not worth the time spent.

Don't get me wrong, I am not blaming the police for this, it is not the police that is at fault, it is the government, the police are doing a good job under the circumstances, but they are being stretched to the limits by a government obsessed with data gathering, paperwork, and bureaucracy.

The Liberal Democrats have a policy of clearly defined measures that will allow us to put more police on the street.

The Liberal democrats are leading the way on the issues!

Why not let them lead the country?

Lib Dem bank tax plan is clear and specific. Beware of copies!

I hear on the the news today that David Cameron has said the Conservatives would impose a tax on banks to repay the billions used to bail out financial institutions, claiming it is "fair and necessary", but he has not disclosed details of the proposal.

The Liberal Democrats have been very specific about how this crucial issue should be tackled, after extensive discussion with the City and others, and it is seriously worrying that both the Conservatives and the Government still do not seem to have worked out a specific proposal - long after the bank collapse and only a few weeks from an election.

Why bother with the other parties?

The Liberal democrats are leading the way on the issues!

Why not let them lead the country?

Putting money back in your pocket

Almost everyone I know has found life tough over the last year or so.

Now more than ever people need more money in their pockets to help them get by. But there’s no sign of that coming from this tired Labour Government. Instead we have the prospect of paying more and more while getting less and less in return.

No wonder people want a change.

There’s little hope of help from the Conservatives either. The top Conservative priority on tax is to cut taxes for millionaires! But if you’re not a millionaire, you won’t get an extra penny.

Only the Liberal Democrats are offering something different - real change and fairness.

Our tax plan, launched by Nick Clegg and Vince Cable, will provide real help for you. We will make the first £10,000 you earn free from tax. If you earn less than £10,000 you will pay no tax at all. If you earn more, than you will still be £700 a year better off.

Sounds great doesn’t it? And what’s even better, it can be paid for by making tax fairer.

It’s time that the very rich started to pay their fair share. By closing tax loopholes exploited by the super rich, taxes on pollution and by introducing a new ‘mansion tax’ on homes that are worth over £2million, we can give everyone a tax cut.

That’s fairer taxes - ordinary people paying a bit less, while the very rich pay a bit more.

It’s through commonsense measures like this that Liberal Democrats will bring real change to Britain. To find out more or to give your support to our campaign, please visit our website at www.LibDems.org.uk or return the enclosed form.

Together we can get real change and get real help for LOCAL families.

This is why I believe that the Liberal Democrats policies are the only policies that make sense for Gosport.