Plan for Britain's Future

Tackle the climate emergency Tackle the climate emergency by generating 80% of our electricity from renewables by 2030 and insulating all low-income homes by 2025.

Give every child the best start in life Give every child the best start in life by recruiting 20,000 more teachers as part of an extra £10 billion a year for schools.

Build a fairer economy Build a fairer economy by providing free childcare from 9 months and giving every adult £10,000 to spend on skills & training throughout their lives.

Transform our mental health services Transform our mental health services by treating mental health with the same urgency as physical health.

2019 Liberal Democrat Manifesto

Leader’s Introduction Foreword For more than three and a half years, our country’s future has been on pause as the Brexit debate has raged on. This election gives us the opportunity to transform... Read more Introduction The Liberal Democrats are the only party contesting this election with a clear plan for how we will build a brighter future. The first step of our plan for a... Read more

Stop Brexit Stop Brexit For over three years, Liberal Democrats have led the fight to stop Brexit. Every vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote to stop Brexit and stay in the EU. Read more

Our Plan for a Stronger Economy Introduction People who work hard and contribute to society should have good, fulfilling and well-paid jobs. Businesses and entrepreneurs who innovate and invest and behave responsibly to their employees and to... Read more Investment for the Future across the UK We will kickstart a devolution revolution and give all parts of the UK a real say backed by meaningful financial muscle. Read more UK2050: Our Vision for an Innovation-Led Economy We will make the UK a world leader in responsible innovation by building on our strengths and we will build a growing economy in which people will have well-paid and fulfilling jobs. Read more Harnessing the Benefits of New Technology We want the UK to lead the world in ethical, inclusive new technology, including artificial intelligence and we will ensure that new technology is developed and deployed ethically. Read more A Better Deal for Entrepreneurs and Small Business Dynamic, entrepreneurial businesses are a force for good and we will ensure that they have the access to funding and long-term capital that they need. Read more Better Business Our plan is for an economy that works for everyone, fosters a diversity of types of business – mutuals, social enterprises and community interest companies – and empowers employees. Read more Fair Taxes We will make sure that big businesses pay their fair share, support small- and medium-sized enterprises and ensure that income earned from wealth is less privileged in the taxation system. Read more Future of Work We will give employees protection and a voice at work while enabling innovative business models to flourish in the modern economy. Read more Opportunities Throughout Life We are embracing the future, championing flexible lifelong learning that gives people the power to follow the path that best suits their ability. Read more Responsible Finances We will responsibly manage the country’s finances – we will stop Brexit and use the increased revenue from a bigger economy to invest in services. Read more Promoting Wellbeing We will improve people’s quality of life by building a strong economy, supporting people’s mental health and ensuring good working conditions. Read more

Our Plan for Better Education and Skills Introduction Education is about achieving the best, about exploring possibilities and seeking new challenges, about fulfilling people’s promise for the good of themselves and the whole of society. The next generation... Read more The Best Start in Life We will deliver free, high-quality childcare from age nine months for the children of working parents, and for all children between the ages of two and four. And we’ll invest in nurseries and Children’s Centres to help disadvantaged children. Read more Schools that Prepare Children for Life We will reverse cuts to school funding, allowing schools to employ an extra 20,000 teachers, end the crisis in Special Educational Needs and Disabilities funding, and end ‘teaching to the test’. Read more Accountable Local Schools We will create a coherent and accountable local schools system in England. We will let local authorities open new Community Schools, while opposing any future expansion of grammar schools. Read more A Better Deal for Teachers Teachers are the most important asset in our education system. We will ensure they are paid a fair wage, and can focus on teaching rather than unnecessary, bureaucratic tests and inspections. Read more Children and Families Ready to Learn Children cannot learn properly if they are undernourished or unhappy. We will extend free school meals to all children in primary education, tackle bullying, and train staff to identify mental health issues. Read more Learning Throughout Life We will protect our world-leading universities by stopping Brexit, invest in Further Education, and help children from poorer families to remain in education and training by introducing a ‘Young People’s Premium’. Read more Access to Culture and Sport Arts, media and sports are essential for personal fulfilment and quality of life. Liberal Democrats will ensure that we continue to invest in our cultural capital. Read more

Our Plan for a Green Society and a Green Economy Introduction The UK should be leading the world in tackling the climate emergency. We are the first generation to know we are destroying the environment, and the last generation with a... Read more Climate Action Now We will set a new legally binding target to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2045 at the latest, and implement a comprehensive climate action plan, cutting emissions across all sectors. Read more Renewable Energy We aim to decarbonise the power sector completely, supporting renewables and household and community energy to create jobs and cut fossil fuel imports; our interim goal is to reach at least 80 per cent renewable electricity by 2030. Read more Warm Homes and Lower Energy Bills We will implement an emergency ten-year programme to reduce energy consumption from all buildings, cutting emissions and energy bills and ending fuel poverty. Read more Green Industry, Green Jobs and Green Products We will provide support for innovation to cut energy and fossil fuel use in industrial processes. We will maximise recovery, reuse, recycling and remanufacturing, cutting resource use, waste and pollution. Read more Saving Nature and the Countryside We will protect the natural environment and reverse biodiversity loss with a Nature Act, at the same time as combatting climate change by planting 60 million trees a year. Read more Improving Transport Our plan is to invest in public transport, encourage walking and cycling, and accelerate the transition to ultra-low-emission transport – reducing the impact of transport on the environment and improving people’s health. Read more Clean and Green We will enact a legal right to unpolluted air. To deliver on this, we will ensure that by 2030, every new car sold is electric, support innovation in zero-emission technologies, and reduce the climate impact of flying. Read more Reducing the Need for Car Travel We will invest in public transport, improving its reliability and affordability, reform the planning system to reduce the need to travel and promote cycling and walking. Read more Fixing Britain’s Railways We will improve the railways, reform the franchising system and improve services to customers. Our plan includes freezing rail fares for commuters and season-ticket holders, extending the network, improving and reopening stations and restoring twin-track lines. Read more Animal Welfare To promote animal welfare and prevent animal suffering, we will introduce stronger penalties for animal cruelty offences, clamp down on illegal pet imports, and Improve standards of animal health and welfare in agriculture. Read more

Our Plan for Health and Social Care Introduction Everyone should be able to live a healthy life with the support they need in their local community. That means properly investing in the NHS and social care, doing more... Read more Funding for Health and Social Care We will raise £7 billion a year from a 1p in the pound rise in Income Tax, and earmark it to relieve the crisis in social care, tackle workforce shortages, and invest in mental health and prevention services. Read more Fixing Mental Health Services Our plan for mental health prioritises early intervention to prevent people from experiencing a mental health crisis and to minimise the number and duration of in-patient stays. This means ensuring all young people can access support quickly. Read more Access to Care Our health and social care services’ greatest resource is their staff, but the NHS and social care workforce are subject to immense pressure, causing too many to leave. We will take the action needed to recruit and retain the staff needed to deliver services. Read more Help to Stay Healthy We need to support people to lead more active and healthy lives. We will publish a National Wellbeing Strategy, reverse cuts to public health budgets, and make it easier for people to enjoy a healthy diet. Read more

Our Plan to Build a Fair Society Introduction People should have enough money to keep a roof over their heads, buy food, heat their home, access services and opportunities online, or afford a simple bus journey to visit... Read more A Safety Net that Works We will build a social security system that works for the modern world – supporting those that need it and helping people back into work. Read more Support for Pensioners People are living longer, making a good pension vitally important: we will make the UK the best place in the world to save for, and enjoy, retirement. Read more Access to Affordable Housing We will oversee a substantial building programme to ensure that everybody has a safe and secure home and we will make the rental market more affordable and secure. Read more End Rough Sleeping Nobody should have to spend a night sleeping on the streets: we will end rough sleeping within five years. Read more Rural and Coastal Communities Our plan is for thriving rural and coastal areas – we will build communities that are innovative, well-connected, resilient and prepared for the future. Read more A Public Health Approach to Violence Our plan is for more police, who are able to focus on the community policing that prevents crime and makes people feel safe and we will invest in the services that prevent crime. Read more Reducing Reoffending We will make the justice system work by focusing on the things that actually prevent crime – focusing on what works to stop re-offending to prevent people becoming victims of crime. Read more

Our Plan for Freedom, Rights and Equality Introduction People should be able to live their lives free from discrimination or intrusion and without fear of having their most fundamental rights violated. But this is not the reality in... Read more Protect Civil Liberties We will build a society where rights and liberties are protected and where nobody has their privacy violated by prying instruments of the state. Read more Demand Equality Our plan is for a government that takes an active role both in punishing discrimination and ensuring that it does not happen in the first place. Read more Promote Diversity We will tackle institutional biases, promote equality and hold power to account through applying values of openness, transparency and accountability. Read more A Compassionate and Effective Immigration System We will welcome migrants coming to the UK for the skills and contribution that they bring, and ensure that everyone has confidence that the immigration system is functioning as it should. Read more Dignity for Refugees and Asylum Seekers Too many people are wrongly denied asylum, with 40 per cent of refusals overturned on appeal: we will make the system work fairly for seekers of sanctuary. Read more

Our Plan for Better Politics Introduction Everybody, wherever they live, should be given a proper chance to influence the decisions that affect them. But, as it stands, British politics is far from delivering this for people. Read more Fair Votes Our plan is to reform British politics to make it more representative and empower citizens. Read more Power for Communities We will drive a devolution revolution to give power to people and communities and help fund the services that people need. Read more High-Quality Public Debate Our plan is for a well-functioning democracy with a high standard of public debate in which there is a pluralistic media environment and citizens are educated and empowered. Read more Power for the Nations and Regions We will not allow Brexit to reverse devolution and will ensure home rule for each of the nations of a strong, federal and united United Kingdom. Read more

Our Plan for a Better World Introduction The world today feels increasingly unstable and unsafe. Nationalism and authoritarianism are on the rise in countries across the globe. President Trump has repeatedly acted to cause instability, whether by... Read more A Peaceful World We will build on the UK’s proud record of international leadership through the EU, UN, NATO and the Commonwealth by promoting values of freedom and opportunity for all. Read more A Secure Defence in the 21st Century The Armed Forces play a vital role in the defence of the nation: we will to properly support service personnel and veterans. Read more Trade, Aid and Investment Our plan for the future is built on championing liberal and international values, ending poverty and promoting the UN Sustainable Development Goals both in the UK and abroad. Read more Promoting Human Rights and Equality Around the World Human rights are global: we will enhance the UK’s soft power and to use it to promote human rights and democracy around the world. Read more Global Climate Action Now The climate emergency is a global challenge and requires a global solution.: we are the only party with a detailed plan to lead global efforts to combat the climate emergency. Read more

Foreword Applies to:





For more than three and a half years, our country’s future has been on pause as the Brexit debate has raged on. This election gives us the opportunity to transform our country and create a brighter future. The Liberal Democrats have an ambitious vision for who we can be – a society where every child and young person is nurtured to become whoever they want to be, where if you play your part in society, you can live a happy and fulfilling life, and where we do everything in our power to save our planet for future generations. And the opportunity for the Liberal Democrats at this election is huge. There are no limits to my ambition for our party as we take our positive vision for a brighter future to the country. In the last few months, tens of thousands of people have joined our party as our membership continues to hit new records. We’ve had our best-ever local elections and beat both Labour and Conservatives in a national election for the first time in a hundred years, returning 16 Liberal Democrat MEPs. And former Labour and Conservative MPs have joined us because they know that we want to build an open, fair and inclusive society. The Liberal Democrats are standing strong, growing every day, and I am so proud to be the Liberal Democrat candidate for Prime Minister at this election. Voters are being told that the only choice is between the Conservatives and Labour. But when I look at Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn, I know that I could do a better job as Prime Minister than either of them. Our country deserves better than what is on offer from the two tired old parties, each led by men who want to reuse ideas from the past – whether the 1870s or the 1970s – and gamble with our children’s futures. We can make a better choice. At this general election, people can choose to vote Liberal Democrat. They can choose a government that will build the kind of country and society we deserve, where every person, every community and our planet can thrive. They can choose what kind of country we are – open and generous, or closed and selfish. And they can choose whether we work with our closest allies or stand alone in the world. For too many people, things aren’t working as they should be. They are working hard and playing fair, and yet they struggle to pay the rent, or put food on the table and they don’t feel confident that their children will go on to have better opportunities than they had. That’s not good enough. And instead of focusing on how we create a brighter future for everyone, our politics has been utterly dominated by Brexit. Leaving the European Union is not the answer to the single parent who is struggling to make ends meet, to the child who needs extra support at school, or to saving our planet. In fact, it will only make those problems worse. Our politics is in a state of flux, and this general election could lead to seismic change out of which a new and different politics can emerge. A politics based on hope, not fear. A politics where every individual and community can thrive, and where we work together to save our planet for future generations. For me, the choice is clear. To stop Brexit and build that brighter future, vote Liberal Democrat. We have the plan that this country deserves, and we are ready to deliver it. Jo Swinson, Leader of the Liberal Democrats × × Close

Introduction Applies to:





The Liberal Democrats are the only party contesting this election with a clear plan for how we will build a brighter future. The first step of our plan for a brighter future is simple: stop Brexit and use the Remain Bonus to invest in public services. We are unashamedly fighting to stay in the European Union, and we are the strongest party of Remain. We believe that our best future as a country is as a member of the European Union. Any form of Brexit will damage our economy, put jobs at risk, hurt our NHS and put our family of nations under enormous strain. There is no Brexit deal that will ever be as good as the deal we currently have as a member of the European Union. Our determination to stop Brexit isn’t just about retaining membership of this or that EU institution. It’s about who we are as a country and the values that drive our choices. It’s about choosing to work with others in taking on the big challenges that we face, whether it’s the climate crisis or cybercrime. It’s about recognising that the zero-sum games of the past no longer apply to a world where our future prosperity is so interlinked with that of our closest allies. Staying in the European Union will secure a £50 billion Remain Bonus, with the economy two per cent larger by 2024-25. We can invest that bonus in our schools, and on tackling in-work poverty and inequality. A Liberal Democrat government will take urgent action to save our planet. We are the last generation that can stop irreversible climate change. We’ve already seen how floods and wildfires are becoming an ever more regular occurrence in our country. And, though we should be proud to be the first country to declare a climate emergency, we cannot ignore the fact that the government has done little else since then. In the meantime, it’s been young people who have consistently put the climate crisis back on the agenda with their inspirational climate strikes. The Liberal Democrats are the only party with a radical, credible and detailed plan to tackle the climate emergency as soon as possible. We will deliver a ten-year emergency programme to cut greenhouse gas emissions substantially straightaway and phase out emissions from the remaining hard-to-treat sectors by 2045 at the latest. By 2030 we will generate 80 per cent of our electricity from renewables and cut energy bills and emissions by insulating homes, prioritising bringing 3.5 million households out of fuel poverty by 2025. In government, we will give every child the best start in life, no matter their ability or background, and we will empower them to make the most of the challenges ahead. But currently too many of our schools are falling behind, teaching assistants are being laid off and cash-strapped councils are struggling to support children with complex needs. Liberal Democrats will invest in schools to build a brighter future for our children. We will reverse school cuts with an emergency cash injection so that pupils have the resources they need to learn. We will increase teacher numbers by 20,000 and let them get on with their jobs, instead of worrying about budgeting for the basics. We will create a fairer economy, where every person can live a secure, happy and fulfilling life. To do that, we will provide free childcare for all children with parents in work from nine months and for all children from two years, up to the time they start school. This will plug the gap in provision, ensuring that parents have an easier choice when it comes to returning to work after parental leave. The great advancements in technology and the ever-changing nature of the world of work mean that more of us will change careers throughout our lives. And it simply isn’t good enough to say that education stops after school or university. A Liberal Democrat government will set up a new Skills Wallet for every adult, giving people £10,000 to spend on approved education and training courses to gain the right skills for the jobs of the future. Creating a fairer economy is about reinventing the relationship between business and the communities in which they operate, so that they are part of the solution to our biggest challenges, not the problem. Finally, we will transform our mental health service by treating it with the same urgency as physical health. About one in four people in the UK experience a mental health problem each year, and while the NHS may be the envy of the world, our mental health service falls far short of what patients deserve. Nearly two-thirds of children and young people with diagnosable mental health conditions are not receiving treatment, and waiting times for psychological therapy can range from just over two weeks to six months, depending on where you are in the country. Over the next Parliament, a Liberal Democrat government will invest £11 billion in mental health to expand access to therapies and increase the number of psychiatrists and specialist mental health practitioners. We will make mental health services 24-hour, including placing mental health liaison teams in all hospitals so that those facing a mental health crisis are not put in police cells. This is the Liberal Democrat plan for a brighter future. × × Close

Stop Brexit Applies to:





Every vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote to stop Brexit and stay in the European Union. For over three years Liberal Democrats have led the fight to stop Brexit. We campaigned to stay in the EU in 2016 and we unequivocally believe that the UK is stronger as part of the EU. The election of a Liberal Democrat majority government on a clear stop Brexit platform will provide a democratic mandate to stop this mess, revoke Article 50 and stay in the EU. In other circumstances, we will continue to fight for a people’s vote with the option to stay in the EU, and in that vote we would passionately campaign to keep the UK in the EU. Electing a Liberal Democrat government is the only way to get the Brexit process over. Although the Conservatives claim that a vote for them will ‘get Brexit done’, it won’t: it will simply usher in more years of difficult negotiations over the UK’s trade deal with the EU, with a very high chance of Britain crashing out and trying to survive on so-called ‘WTO terms’ – a deal so bad that almost no other country anywhere in the world trades on that basis. Labour want to reopen the Withdrawal Agreement all over again and negotiate a new deal – but they will not say whether they want Britain to remain in the EU or leave. The fact is that whether Labour Red or Tory Blue, Brexit is bad for the UK. The importance of the UK’s membership of the EU has never been clearer. Working together through the EU, the countries of Europe have achieved peace and prosperity on a continent historically wracked by war and division. That is a tremendous achievement; it should not be taken for granted, particularly as Europe faces new dangers from an increasingly aggressive Russia and as the US turns away from its old alliances. Many of the great challenges of the 21st century are global: climate change, human trafficking, the arms trade, the power of multinationals, global poverty and inequality. By separating itself from the EU, Britain diminishes its capacity to respond to these threats. By working together with our European neighbours, we increase the UK’s ability to meet those challenges: for example, in international negotiations, in regulating the tech giants or in creating markets for climate-friendly products. There is no doubt that full membership of the EU is good for the British economy. Brexit would bring to an end businesses’ unfettered access to the European single market – the destination of almost half of Britain’s exports – and to the smooth flow of goods that complex industrial supply chains require. The prospect of tariffs and border checks is already causing manufacturers to shift their operations to other EU states and UK manufacturers are already reporting that export orders have dried up. There is no prospect of replacing lost EU markets with free trade agreements with other countries thousands of miles away. If the UK gives in to President Trump’s demands to lower environmental and health standards for a trade deal with the US, we would lose the ability to export to the EU, which would drive many British businesses, including most farmers, out of business. Brexit is bad for jobs, growth and prosperity. Brexit will also mean an end to freedom of movement, which has brought the UK tremendous social, economic and cultural benefits. It gives British people the opportunity to work, be together with their loved ones, study and retire anywhere in the EU. There is no contradiction between our European and our British, national and regional identities: they enrich one another. By stopping Brexit, Liberal Democrats will protect and maintain freedom of movement, safeguarding the rights of UK citizens living elsewhere in the EU and EU citizens in the UK. Liberal Democrats will also support the right of the people of Gibraltar to remain in the European Union. EU citizens are valued members of our communities and we believe that they should be afforded the right to full participation in civic life, including the ability to stand for office and vote in UK referendums, European elections and general elections as well as local elections. Liberal Democrats will extend these rights to all EU citizens who have lived in the UK for five years or longer. To ensure that EU citizens are not denied their vote in any election or referendum, we will also implement urgent electoral law reform, in line with the Electoral Commission’s 2014 recommendations, including introducing a legal requirement for councils to inform citizens of the steps they must take to be successfully registered and making the necessary changes to ensure that the UK has an automatic system of inclusion in elections. The national humiliation of Brexit puts so much at risk – the NHS, public services, jobs across the country, scientific collaboration, peace in Northern Ireland, the unity of the UK, our ability to tackle global crises such as climate change and our global reputation as a country that is confident and outward-facing. By keeping the UK in the EU, we can get on with tackling the real issues facing our country, using the Remain Bonus of £50 billion to invest in public services and tackle inequality. A Liberal Democrat government will stop Brexit – and build a brighter future for the UK by keeping us at the heart of the European Union. × × Close

Our Plan for a Stronger Economy Applies to:





People who work hard and contribute to society should have good, fulfilling and well-paid jobs. Businesses and entrepreneurs who innovate and invest and behave responsibly to their employees and to the environment should be supported. But this is not how the UK is today: too many people can’t get on, and live secure, happy and fulfilling lives. The failure of governments to invest in infrastructure and skills has undermined productivity, and now the Conservatives threaten to make the vast majority of people poorer and punish business and enterprise through a hard Brexit. Meanwhile, we are facing profound economic changes that demand new partnerships between government and business: the emergence of artificial intelligence requires new approaches to work, and the challenge of transitioning to a zero-carbon economy must be managed in a way that does not hurt the least well-off and makes the UK more competitive. The UK’s strengths in science, financial services, the creative industries and high-tech manufacturing mean that we should be well placed to build an economy that treats business as part of the solution and spreads opportunity to everyone. However, neither Labour nor the Conservatives are capable of guiding the economy through these challenges. Both parties are reaching to the past for answers that are no longer relevant. The Conservatives are pursuing a deregulated, low-tax Brexit that will set our economy back for generations; Labour are facilitating Brexit while seeking to renationalise their way back to a form of 1970s socialism. Liberal Democrats are now the natural home of business: we are the only party with a new plan for a brighter economic future. A plan to invest in climate-friendly infrastructure and technology and create new green businesses and jobs; a plan to build on our scientific, technological and creative strengths; a plan to stop Brexit and build a more prosperous, equal and inclusive economy. Whichever part of the country people are from and whatever stage of their career they are at, our plan will mean greater opportunities and good, well-paid jobs. Our priorities in the next parliament will be: Investing £130 billion in infrastructure – upgrading our transport and energy systems, building schools, hospitals and homes, empowering all regions and nations of the UK and developing the climate-friendly infrastructure of the future.

Enabling an adaptable, future-focused workforce – empowering individuals through new Skills Wallets worth £10,000 for every individual.

Introducing a wellbeing budget and basing decisions for government spending on what will improve wellbeing as well as on economic and fiscal indicators. × × Close

Investment for the Future across the UK Applies to:





Opportunity and access to education, employment and services are not fairly spread around the country. This means that many people become stuck in insecure work in which they have no prospect of promotion. The Conservatives pay lip service to the idea of regional growth while pursuing a reckless Brexit that will deepen inequality and place trade barriers between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK; Labour’s backwards-looking approach of Whitehall running renationalised industries denies people and communities autonomy and will hit investment and stifle innovation. Liberal Democrats are the only party looking to the future with a plan to kickstart a devolution revolution that will give all parts of the UK a real say backed by meaningful financial muscle. This is the only sustainable answer to the regional divide. We will: Give local authorities and regions the power to make decisions about their areas.

Introduce a capital £50 billion Regional Rebalancing Programme for infrastructure spend across the nations and regions of the UK, with local and devolved authorities given a say in how it is used, reinforced by a Just Transition Fund to support communities negatively affected by policies to tackle the climate emergency.

Continue to champion investment in the Northern Powerhouse and the Midlands Engine, putting significant capital resources into infrastructure projects across these regions.

Set an ambitious National Industrial Strategy to transform the economy and develop Local Industrial Strategies within it that incentivise clustering by businesses and universities with particular specialisations.

Work with the major banks to fund the creation of a local banking sector dedicated to meeting the needs of local small and medium-sized businesses.

Expand the British Business Bank to perform a more central role in the economy, to ensure that viable small and medium-sized businesses have access to capital, even when the rest of the commercial banking system can’t provide it.

Support the tourist industry which is vital for many local economies by: Upgrading the status of tourism within government, by creating a Department of Digital, Culture, Media, Sport and Tourism, with a designated Minister of State for Tourism. Enabling local authorities to bring in tourist levies to fund local tourism infrastructure.

Liberal Democrats want to take advantage of historically low interest rates to increase borrowing for investment to build the economy of the future. We are committed to a responsible and realistic £130 billion package of additional infrastructure investment, which will prioritise: Significant investment in public transport, including converting the rail network to ultra-low-emission technology (electric or hydrogen) by 2035, and a continued commitment to HS2, Crossrail 2 and other major new strategic rail routes.

A programme of installing hyper-fast, fibre-optic broadband across the UK – with a particular focus on connecting rural areas.

New direct spending on housebuilding to help build 300,000 homes a year by 2024, including 100,000 social homes.

An emergency ten-year programme to reduce energy consumption from all the UK’s buildings, cutting emissions and fuel bills and ending fuel poverty.

Capital investment in schools and hospitals to support capacity increases and modernisation.

£5 billion of initial capital for a new Green Investment Bank, using public money to attract private investment for zero-carbon priorities. We will ensure that the National Infrastructure Commission takes fully into account the climate and environmental implications of all national infrastructure decisions. × × Close

UK2050: Our Vision for an Innovation-Led Economy Applies to:





We want to lay the foundations for the UK to be the best place in the world for innovation-led businesses in the long-term – to be a place where people come from across the EU and the world to turn their ideas into reality. But with R&D and innovation investment lagging behind other countries and being overly concentrated in South East England, it needs major change to make this vision a reality. Only the Liberal Democrats can deliver this; the Conservatives are harking back to a romanticised imperial past, while pursuing a Brexit that will hit research and innovation, which is so dependent on European and other international collaboration, while Labour has no plan for the economy of the future. Liberal Democrats have a transformative plan to make the UK a world leader in responsible innovation by taking advantage of the UK’s strengths and what we are good at as a nation: our natural advantages in renewable energy; our strong university sector; and our regional strengths such as bioscience in the Midlands, advanced materials in Yorkshire, zero-carbon technology in the North West and photonics in Scotland. We will build a growing economy in which people will have well-paid and fulfilling jobs. We will: Increase national spending on research and development to three per cent of GDP. We will publish a roadmap to achieve this ambition by the earliest date possible, via an interim target of 2.4 per cent of GDP by no later than 2027.

Support innovation, with a goal of doubling innovation spending across the economy.

Increase the Strength in Places Fund, to boost research and development outside the ‘golden triangle’ of Oxford-Cambridge-London.

Build on the industrial strategy developed by Liberal Democrat ministers in government, working with sectors which are critical to the UK’s ability to trade internationally, creating more ‘Catapult’ innovation and technology centres and backing private investment in particular in zero-carbon and environmental innovation.

Develop the skilled workforce needed to support this growth by introducing a new two-year visa for students to work after graduation and a major expansion of high-quality apprenticeships including Higher Apprenticeships, backed up by new sector-led National Colleges.

Develop a national skills strategy for key sectors, including zero-carbon technologies, to help match skills and people; our new Skills Wallets will allow people to retrain and upskill when they need to. (also see Opportunities Throughout Life section, p.25)

Reform building standards to ensure that all new homes built from 2022 have full connectivity to ultra-fast broadband and are designed to enable the use of smart technologies.

Continue to support investment in new UK digital start-ups by reforming the British Business Bank’s support for venture capital funds to enable it to help funds ‘crowd in’ new backers rather than acting as a funder of last resort.

Support growth in the creative industries, including video gaming, by continuing to support the Creative Industries Council and tailored industry-specific tax support, promoting creative skills, supporting modern and flexible patent, copyright and licensing rules, and addressing the barriers to finance faced by small creative businesses.

Create creative enterprise zones to grow and regenerate the cultural output of areas across the UK. × × Close

Harnessing the Benefits of New Technology Applies to:





Our ambition is for the UK to lead the world in ethical, inclusive new technology, including artificial intelligence. We will invest in education to equip people with the skills they need – whether to use new technology or to create it – while also attracting and welcoming the best talent from around the world. We will enable innovators and entrepreneurs to experiment and take risks, while taking on concentrations of power that stifle competition, limit choice for consumers and hamper progress. And we will ensure that new technology is developed and deployed ethically, so that it respects people’s fundamental rights, including the rights to privacy and non-discrimination. We will: Support the UK’s diverse, inclusive tech sector by teaching core skills such as logic, verbal reasoning and creativity in schools, and by reforming immigration rules – including enabling industry bodies to sponsor work visas.

Support the growth of new jobs and businesses in the tech sector by allowing companies to claim R&D tax credits against the cost of purchasing datasets and cloud computing, simplifying the regulatory landscape and speeding up regulatory change.

Ensure that new technologies are used in ethical and responsible ways by: Introducing a Lovelace Code of Ethics to ensure the use of personal data and artificial intelligence is unbiased, transparent and accurate, and respects privacy. Giving the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation the power to ‘call in’ products that appear to breach this Code. Requiring all courses relating to digital technologies to include teaching about ethics and the Code specifically. Introducing a kitemark for companies that meet the highest ethical standards in their development and use of artificial intelligence and other new technologies. Convening a citizens’ assembly to determine when it is appropriate for the government to use algorithms in decision-making.

Develop a mechanism to allow the public to share in the profits made by tech companies in the use of their data.

Empower consumers and ensure that everyone can enjoy the benefits of new technology, by setting a UK-wide target for digital literacy and requiring all products to provide a short, clear version of their terms and conditions, setting out the key facts as they relate to individuals’ data and privacy.

Enable people whose jobs are affected by automation to gain new skills and retrain with our new Skills Wallets, so that they can work in the good, well-paying jobs of the future. × × Close

A Better Deal for Entrepreneurs and Small Business Applies to:





Dynamic, entrepreneurial businesses are a force for good: entrepreneurs, the self-employed and small businesses form the backbone of local economies and government should support them. However, the Conservatives are pursuing policies that make it harder to start successful new businesses and Labour do not understand or value start-ups and small businesses. Liberal Democrats are the only party who understand the importance of these businesses and who will ensure that they have the access to funding and long-term capital that they need. We will: Create a new ‘start-up allowance’ to help those starting a new business with their living costs in the crucial first weeks of their business.

Support fast-growing businesses seeking to scale up, through the provision of mentoring support.

Prioritise small and medium-sized businesses in the rollout of hyper-fast broadband.

Require all government agencies and contractors and companies with more than 250 employees to sign up to the prompt payment code, making it enforceable.

Ensure that the company at the top of a supply chain cannot abuse its position to shore up its own cashflow at the expense of smaller suppliers.

Expand the activities of the British Business Bank, enabling it to perform a more central role in the economy by tackling the shortage of equity capital for growing firms and providing long-term capital for medium-sized businesses.

Provide a supportive framework to develop social enterprises – businesses with a social focus rather than a profit motive.

Expand the rights and benefits available to those in insecure forms of employment, such as offering parental leave and pay to the self-employed.

Finance the transformation of town centres by expanding the Future High Streets Fund.

Help protect our high streets and town centres by scrapping the rule which allows developers to convert offices and shops into residential properties without planning permission. × × Close

Better Business Applies to:





Business can be a force for good in our economy: we need thriving businesses to create wealth and a model of responsible capitalism generates good jobs, shares prosperity and sees businesses promote rights and protect the environment. But the system is not working as it should: unscrupulous employers are still able to exploit their workforce and even when businesses fail, those at the top often receive huge rewards while staff lose their jobs. And we do not yet have a framework that sufficiently rewards businesses for environmentally sustainable behaviour – or penalises them for environmentally damaging activities. Labour do not recognise the good that business can do; the Conservatives don’t care about the consequences of businesses that are run irresponsibly. Only the Liberal Democrats will promote responsible capitalism that works for the future. Our plan is for an economy that works for everyone, fosters a diversity of types of business – mutuals, social enterprises and community interest companies – and empowers employees. We will: Encourage employers to promote employee ownership by giving staff in listed companies with more than 250 employees a right to request shares, to be held in trust for the benefit of employees.

Strengthen worker participation in decision-making, including staff representation on remuneration committees, and require all UK-listed companies and all private companies with more than 250 employees to have at least one employee representative on their boards with the same legal duties and responsibilities as other directors.

Introduce a general duty of care for the environment and human rights – requiring companies, financial institutions and public sector agencies to exercise due diligence in avoiding specified activities such as child labour or modern slavery, or specified products such as commodities produced with deforestation, in their operations and supply chains, and to report on their actions.

Reform fiduciary duty and company purpose rules to ensure that all large companies have a formal statement of corporate purpose, including considerations such as employee welfare, environmental standards, community benefit and ethical practice, alongside benefit to shareholders, and that they report formally on the wider impact of the business on society and the environment.

Encourage new forms of incorporation and a diversity of business types, such as for large firms contracting with the public sector or providing essential utilities and for smaller firms wanting a dual purpose to be profit-making and have a positive impact on society, workers, communities and the environment.

Require binding and public votes of shareholders on executive pay policies.

Extend the scope of the existing ‘public interest’ test when considering approvals for takeovers of large or strategically significant companies by overseas-based owners to recognise the benefits to the UK economy, workers and consumers of protecting UK companies from speculative or short-term interests. × × Close

Fair Taxes Applies to:





Government must ensure the tax system meets the needs of a modern economy and is ready for the transition to a digital and zero-carbon economy. Businesses and individuals who benefit from being based in the UK should pay their fair share in tax – and responsible businesses are willing to do this. They benefit from public goods such as an educated workforce, a stable economy and publicly-funded infrastructure, and it is right that they should contribute towards them. But the taxation system is unbalanced and unfair: it is too easy for tech giants and large monopolies to avoid tax and income from employment is taxed more harshly than income generated by wealth. Labour and the Conservatives are looking to the past for answers that will not work today: Labour want to hike up income tax in a way that will not even ensure that more tax is paid; the Conservatives have no interest in making the taxation system fairer. Our plan for the future will see big businesses paying their fair share, support small- and medium-sized enterprises and ensure that income earned from wealth is not privileged when compared to income from employment – making sure the tax system is fair to all. We will: Restore Corporation Tax to 20 per cent – reversing the Conservatives’ reduction of this tax to 17 per cent – and keep the rate stable with a predictable future path.

Taxing income from capital more fairly compared to income from work by abolishing the separate Capital Gains Tax-free allowance and instead taxing capital gains and salaries through a single allowance.

Simplify business taxation to lower administration costs – supporting smaller companies – and reduce opportunities for tax avoidance.

Replace Business Rates in England with a Commercial Landowner Levy based solely on the land value of commercial sites rather than their entire capital value, thereby stimulating investment, and shifting the burden of taxation from tenants to landowners.

Take tough action against corporate tax evasion and avoidance especially by international tech giants and large monopolies, including by: Introducing a General Anti-Avoidance Rule, setting a target for HM Revenue and Customs to reduce the tax gap and investing in more staff to enable them to meet it. Reforming place of establishment rules to stop multinationals unfairly shifting profits out of the UK. Improving the Digital Services Tax to ensure tech giants pay their fair share. Support and build on the OECD’s proposals to require multinationals to pay a level of tax which is more closely related to their sales in every country in which they operate.

End retrospective tax changes like the loan charge brought in by the Conservatives, so that individuals and firms are treated fairly, and review recent proposals to change the IR35 rules.

Scrap the Marriage Tax Allowance. × × Close

Future of Work Applies to:





People should have secure jobs, with proper rights and fair pay. However, changes in technology and the nature of employment have outgrown the existing system of employment rights and protections. The Conservatives have not done enough to support workers as they are sucked into insecure, poorly paid jobs; Labour’s dogmatic, backward-looking approach would destroy flexible jobs that people value and harm the economy. Liberal Democrats are the only ones with a plan for 21st century work: a plan that will give employees protection and a voice at work while enabling innovative business models to flourish in the modern economy. We will make work pay and ensure that there are good and well-paid jobs available for people to do. We will: Establish an independent review to consult on how to set a genuine Living Wage across all sectors. We will pay this Living Wage in all central government departments and their agencies, and encourage other public sector employers to do likewise.

Establish a powerful new Worker Protection Enforcement Authority to protect those in precarious work.

Change the law so that flexible working is open to all from day one in the job, with employers required to advertise jobs accordingly, unless there are significant business reasons why that is not possible.

Modernise employment rights to make them fit for the age of the ‘gig economy’, including by: Establishing a new ‘dependent contractor’ employment status in between employment and self-employment, with entitlements to basic rights such as minimum earnings levels, sick pay and holiday entitlement. Reviewing the tax and National Insurance status of employees, dependent contractors and freelancers to ensure fair and comparable treatment. Setting a 20 per cent higher minimum wage for people on zero-hour contracts at times of normal demand to compensate them for the uncertainty of fluctuating hours of work. Giving a right to request a fixed-hours contract after 12 months for ‘zero hours’ and agency workers, not to be unreasonably refused. Reviewing rules concerning pensions so that those in the gig economy don’t lose out, and portability between roles is protected. Shifting the burden of proof in employment tribunals regarding employment status from individual to employer.

Strengthen the ability of unions to represent workers effectively in the modern economy, including a right of access to workplaces. × × Close

Opportunities Throughout Life Applies to:





With technology advancing and the world of work always and rapidly changing, skills learned at 18 or 21 will not last a lifetime and it has never been more important for people to continually develop new skills. The system is not set up for this though – opportunities are limited and people do not get the chance to make the most of their talents. We need to empower people to develop new skills so that they can thrive in the technologies and industries that are key to Britain’s economic future. Both the Conservatives and Labour are stuck pursuing 20th century solutions to this new challenge. Only the Liberal Democrats are embracing the future, championing flexible lifelong learning that gives people the power to follow the path that best suits their ability. We will: Introduce new Skills Wallets for every adult in England, giving them £10,000 to spend on education and training throughout their lives: The government will put in £4,000 at age 25, £3,000 at age 40 and £3,000 at age 55. Individuals, their employers and local government will be able to make additional payments into the wallets. Individuals can choose how and when to spend this money on a range of approved education and training courses from providers who are regulated and monitored by the Office for Students. Individuals will have access to free careers guidance to help them to decide how to spend the money in their Skills Wallets. Government will work with industry to identify skills needs and to evaluate and certify courses.

Expand the apprenticeship levy into a wider ‘Skills and Training Levy’ to help prepare the UK’s workforce for the economic challenges ahead with 25 per cent of the funds raised by the levy going into a ‘Social Mobility Fund’ targeted at areas with the greatest skill needs.

Develop National Colleges as national centres of expertise for key sectors, such as renewable energy, to deliver the high-level vocational skills that businesses need.

Identify and seek to solve skills gaps such as the lack of advanced technicians by expanding higher vocational training like foundation degrees, Higher National Diplomas, Higher National Certificates and Higher Apprenticeships. × × Close

Responsible Finances Applies to:





A good government should responsibly manage the nation’s finances: taking advantage of opportunities to borrow to invest in key infrastructure while making sure that day-to-day spending does not exceed the amount of money raised in taxes. The Liberal Democrats are the only party who will manage the country’s finances properly. The Conservatives are pursuing a Brexit that will wreck the economy for a generation, making it impossible to sustainably invest in public services. Labour will waste billions nationalising utilities – spending money that could be used to improve them just to bring them under state control. Our plan for the future is built on responsible management of the country’s finances: stopping Brexit and using the increased revenue from a bigger economy to invest in services and using the money that Labour would waste to tackle the climate emergency and invest in transport and energy infrastructure. We will: Use the £50 billion Remain Bonus to invest in services and tackle inequality, giving a major boost to schools and combatting in-work poverty.

Ensure that key services are properly funded and responsibly manage their budgets so that they rise year-on-year.

End the continual erosion of local government funding and commit to a real increase in local government funding throughout the Parliament.

Ensure overall national debt continues to decline as a share of national income.

Protect the independence of the Bank of England and keep the inflation target of two per cent. × × Close

Promoting Wellbeing Applies to:





There is no more fundamental purpose for government than supporting people to expand their quality of life. A successful economy is important, because it supports jobs, income and well-funded public services – all of which matter for individuals’ wellbeing. But the conventional focus on GDP as the objective not only of government but society as a whole is clearly insufficient. People in the UK deserve to have their wellbeing considered and invested in, and a Liberal Democrat government will do just that. Liberal Democrats understand that wellbeing requires both a strong economy and a government that considers many other aspects of life, including support for people’s mental health and good working conditions. Only a Liberal Democrat government will put the wellbeing of people and the planet first. We will: Introduce a wellbeing budget, following the example of New Zealand – basing decisions on what will improve wellbeing as well as on economic and fiscal indicators.

Appoint a Minister for Wellbeing, who will make an annual statement to Parliament on the main measures of wellbeing and the effects of government policies on them.

Introduce wellbeing impact assessments for all government policies.

Prioritise government spending on the things that matter most to people’s wellbeing – both now and in the future – including: Access to high-quality mental health and other health services. Schools that build emotional resilience and properly prepare our children for both work and relationships. Jobs for the future, through further education and Skills Wallets. Community services that tackle loneliness and prevent isolation. Targeted support for those most at risk of poor wellbeing: vulnerable children, people who are homeless, victims of trafficking and exploitation. Providing welfare support to those who need it. Reducing Adverse Childhood Experiences by investing further in services during pregnancy and the first two years of a child’s life.

Ensure that the environment is protected for future generations with clean air to breathe and urgent action to tackle the climate emergency. × × Close

Our Plan for Better Education and Skills Applies to:





Education is about achieving the best, about exploring possibilities and seeking new challenges, about fulfilling people’s promise for the good of themselves and the whole of society. The next generation will face a complex, technologically advanced and ever-changing world. England’s education system – from nurseries and schools, to universities and colleges – should be world-class, helping every child to make the most of the opportunities ahead, no matter their ability or background. It must nurture not only academic excellence but also creativity, adaptability, and teamwork. Instead, nurseries are struggling, and the attainment gap between rich and poor is widening. Teaching assistants are being laid off. Cash-strapped councils are struggling to support children with complex needs. Too many schools are unable to keep their doors open for a full five-day week. The Conservatives are failing our children. They have cut school and college budgets to the bone. They focus too heavily on test results at the expense of giving children a good all-round education. The closest they have to a big idea is the backward-looking and divisive plan to create more grammar schools, despite the evidence that shows that they harm social mobility. Labour want to waste time and money on a massive top-down reorganisation which will do nothing to improve standards. The high-stakes culture of Ofsted inspections and testing – especially in primary schools – has led to pupils and teachers being anxious and stressed about going to school. Creative subjects are being squeezed out of the classroom. Liberal Democrats will build a brighter future for every one of our children. We have a plan to boost quality at every stage of education. We will start with a bold offer of free childcare from the of age nine months (the end of paid parental leave), transforming the opportunities for early years education and helping parents who want to combine caring and working. We will reverse school cuts with an immediate emergency cash injection so that pupils have the resources they need to learn, and let teachers get on with the job of raising standards rather than having to worry about budgeting for the basics. Parents should get the full picture of how their school is doing. Primary schools cannot be properly measured by just one week of tests. There must be robust inspections that measure social and emotional development alongside attainment. They should support schools to succeed, instead of punishing them for failure. Parents should not have to be kept waiting for their child’s needs to be identified and supported. Liberal Democrats will put wellbeing at the heart of every school, and better fund special needs education. Further Education colleges have a vital role in giving opportunities to young people who want to pursue vocational study, and Liberal Democrats will end the neglect they have suffered for too long. The UK has some outstanding universities and research institutions and we need to build on their success. In the brighter Liberal Democrat future, children will come home from school happier, healthier and with all the skills they need to succeed in life. Free childcare will allow parents to choose the balance of work and childcare that suits them, and help close attainment gaps in education and gender gaps in pay. Revitalised vocational and Higher Education will equip individuals and the economy to thrive. Our top priorities in the next parliament will be: Providing free, high-quality childcare for children of working parents from nine months.

Reversing cuts to school funding, employing an extra 20,000 schoolteachers, and clearing the backlog of repairs to school and college buildings.

Ending teaching to the test by scrapping mandatory SATs, and replacing existing government performance tables (‘league tables’) of schools with a broader set of indicators. × × Close

The Best Start in Life Applies to:





Nurseries are struggling. With no government support for most families between the end of parental leave and age three, and the average price for 25 hours a week of nursery childcare for a child under two now at £6,600 a year, too many new parents are forced to choose between caring for their child and their careers. At the same time, the achievement gap between richer and poorer, which can best be tackled in the early years, is rising. The Conservatives have promised to help, but their childcare policy only covers three- and four-year-olds in working families, only amounts to 30 hours a week – less time than children spend in school – and doesn’t cover school holidays. Even the hours they do offer are underfunded and this means that many providers struggle to deliver a quality Early Years education. Many parents who want to work, especially mothers, can spend several years out of the workplace because they can’t afford childcare. This affects their career trajectory, their confidence, and their long-term earning potential. Liberal Democrats have a plan to deliver the best start in life for children: free high-quality childcare from nine months for all working parents, properly funded. Parents wanting to go back to work will get the help they need, knowing that their child will be happy, healthy and ready to start school. And by tripling the Early Years Pupil Premium and expanding Children’s Centres, we can give further help to the most disadvantaged children, narrowing the achievement gap. We will: Offer free, high-quality childcare for every child aged two to four and children aged between nine and 24 months where their parents or guardians are in work: 35 hours a week, 48 weeks a year.

Increase the funding for these free hours to cover the actual cost of nursery provision.

Invest £1 billion a year in Children’s Centres to support families and tackle inequalities in children’s health, development and life chances.

Triple the Early Years Pupil Premium (to £1,000) to give extra help to disadvantaged children who are at risk of falling behind from the very beginning of their education.

Require all Early Years settings to have a training programme for staff, with the majority of staff working with children to have a relevant Early Years qualification or be working towards one.

In the long run, each Early Years setting should have at least one person qualified to graduate level.

Introduce ‘baby boxes’ in England, as advocated by the Royal College of Midwives, to provide babies and parents with essential items to help with health and development. × × Close

Schools that Prepare Children for Life Applies to:





An education system which focuses only on a narrow range of academic subjects and measures pupils’ abilities in a handful of high-pressure exams, does not give young people the skills they need to get on in life. It also lets down those children who do not work well in exam conditions. Liberal Democrats will ensure England’s education system delivers high academic standards while also helping children grow into happy, healthy and confident adults; and nurtures and values all styles of learning. We will: Reverse cuts to school funding, allowing schools to employ an extra 20,000 teachers and reduce class sizes, restoring them to 2015 levels per pupil with an emergency cash injection.

Invest to clear the backlog of repairs to school and college buildings so we have schools that are safe places to learn in.

End the crisis in Special Educational Needs and Disabilities funding by allocating additional cash to local authorities to halve the amount that schools pay towards the cost of a child’s Education Health and Care Plan.

Introduce a ‘curriculum for life’, in all state-funded schools. This will include Personal, Social and Health Education, financial literacy, environmental awareness, first aid and emergency lifesaving skills, mental health education, citizenship and age-appropriate Relationships and Sex Education (RSE). Teaching about sexual consent, LGBT+ relationships, and issues surrounding explicit images and content will be included in RSE.

Establish an independent body of education experts who will use the most up-to-date educational evidence to oversee any future curriculum changes. It would take these decisions out of the hands of politicians and put an end to unnecessary and often politically motivated changes, which disrupt children’s learning and place an extra burden on teachers.

Reduce unnecessary stress on pupils and teachers and end ‘teaching to the test’, by scrapping existing mandatory SATs and replacing them with a formal, moderated teacher assessment at the end of each phase and some lighter-touch testing.

Give parents school performance measures they can trust, by replacing existing government performance tables (‘league tables’) with a broader set of indicators including information about pupils’ and teachers’ wellbeing, as well as academic attainment.

Replace Ofsted with a new HM Inspector of Schools. Inspections should take place every three years and should consider a broader range of factors including the social and emotional development of children, and the wellbeing of staff and pupils. Independent schools should be subject to the same inspection regime.

Improve the quality of vocational education, including skills for entrepreneurship and self-employment, and improve careers advice and links with employers in schools and colleges.

Protect the availability of arts and creative subjects in the curriculum and act to remove barriers to pupils studying these subjects, including by abolishing the English Baccalaureate as a performance measure.

Teach the core skills required for children to flourish in the modern world, including critical thinking, verbal reasoning and creativity. × × Close

Accountable Local Schools Applies to:





The fragmentation of the education system, with more than half of secondary schools and one quarter of primary schools in Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs), had led to a lack of accountability to local communities. There is competition rather than cooperation between schools, with some operating unfair admissions systems and off-rolling pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disability or those unlikely to succeed in examinations. With academies standing outside the oversight of Local Authorities, and many MAT schools not even having a local governing body, parents are finding it increasingly difficult to raise issues with schools, and there is little evidence that the children’s voice is heard. There is an increasing trend to exclude children (or use internal exclusion units), which is damaging and dangerous to the young people involved. The Conservatives’ ideological obsession with more grammar schools will only add further division to the system. Liberal Democrats want to restore accountability and give every child the chance of attending an excellent local school. We will: Give local authorities with responsibility for education the powers and resources to act as Strategic Education Authorities for their area, including responsibility for places planning, exclusions, administering admissions including in-year admissions, and SEND functions.

Create a level playing field by requiring MATs to undergo external inspection and allowing local authorities to open new Community Schools where needed.

Oppose any future expansion of grammar schools and devolve all capital funding for new school spaces to local authorities. × × Close

A Better Deal for Teachers Applies to:





There is a crisis in teacher retention and recruitment in our schools, driven by years of real-terms pay cuts, and an increasingly unmanageable workload created by unnecessary bureaucracy. Teachers feel demoralised and undervalued, as the funding crisis in our schools coupled with the culture of excessive high-stakes testing prevent them from giving every child the high-quality education they deserve. Liberal Democrats will ensure teachers are paid a fair wage for the vital work they do, and that they are empowered to focus on delivering a high-quality education to their pupils, rather than being put under unnecessary pressure from testing and inspections which offer little-to-no educational benefit. Teachers are the biggest and most important asset in our education system. They need world-class levels of training and support to help them deliver the great teaching we want in our schools. We will: Raise the starting salary for teachers to £30,000 and increase all teachers’ pay by at least three per cent per year throughout the parliament.

Introduce a clear and properly funded entitlement to genuinely high-quality professional development for all teachers – rising to the level of 50 hours per year by 2025. We will also give extra training to teachers who are required to teach subjects at secondary level where they themselves do not have a post A-level qualification. × × Close

Children and Families Ready to Learn Applies to:





Education doesn’t begin and end at the school gates. A love of learning can be nurtured from early childhood, and continue throughout life. However, our young people are some of the most anxious and unhappy in the world. Schools are on the front line in dealing with children and young adults with mental health issues. We also know that children cannot learn properly if they are undernourished. Parents are under huge pressure and receive little support even though home is the biggest influence on children’s learning. Liberal Democrats believe that parents need to be properly empowered and supported with the tools they need to raise the next generation. To ensure children and adults are able to make the most of the educational opportunities which are open to them, the government must also do more to support health and wellbeing. We will: Extend free school meals to all children in primary education and to all secondary school children whose families receive Universal Credit, as well as promoting school breakfast clubs.

Ensure that all teaching staff have the training to identify mental health issues and that schools provide immediate access for pupil support and counselling.

Ensure there is a specific individual responsible for mental health in schools, who would provide a link to expertise and support for children experiencing problems. They would also take a lead on developing whole-school approaches to mental well-being.

Give schools a statutory duty to promote the wellbeing of their pupils as part of the inspection framework.

Tackle bullying in schools, including bullying on the basis of gender, sexuality, gender identity, or gender expression, by promoting pastoral leadership in schools and delivering high-quality sex and relationships education.

Require inclusive school uniform policies that are gender-neutral and flexible enough to suit different budgets, and provide training for school staff on how to review and improve their uniform policies.

Challenge gender stereotyping and early sexualisation, working with schools to promote positive body image and break down outdated perceptions of gender appropriateness of particular academic subjects.

Include teaching about how to use social media responsibly in our ’curriculum for life‘ and provide advice and support for parents on how to help their children protect themselves online. × × Close

Learning Throughout Life Applies to:





British universities are examples of excellence throughout the world. Their ability to maintain top-quality research activity, to attract funding and to deliver the best teaching depends on being open and outward looking – which this Government’s disastrous approach to Brexit is already damaging. Liberal Democrats will protect our world-leading higher education sector by stopping Brexit, enabling it to continue to rely on international collaboration and being able to attract leading academics from around the world. Further Education is vital route to learning and we will invest to support it. We will: Reverse the damage to universities posed by Brexit and related uncertainty by stopping Brexit and keeping the UK at the heart of the EU.

Invest an extra £1 billion in Further Education funding, including by refunding colleges for the VAT they pay.

Help children from poorer families to remain in education and training beyond the age of 16 by introducing a ‘Young People’s Premium’. This would be based on the same eligibility criteria as the Pupil Premium, but a portion of it would be paid directly to the young person aged 16-18.

Raise standards in universities by strengthening the Office for Students, to make sure all students receive a high-quality education.

Require universities to make mental health services accessible to their students, and introduce a Student Mental Health Charter through legislation.

Reinstate maintenance grants for the poorest students, ensuring that living costs are not a barrier to disadvantaged young people studying at university.

Establish a review of higher education finance in the next parliament to consider any necessary reforms in the light of the latest evidence of the impact of the existing financing system on access, participation and quality, and make sure there are no more retrospective raising of rates or selling-off of loans to private companies.

Ensure that all universities work to widen participation by disadvantaged and underrepresented groups across the sector, prioritising their work with students in schools and colleges, and require every university to be transparent about selection criteria. × × Close

Access to Culture and Sport Applies to:





Arts, media and sports are essential for personal fulfilment and quality of life – they enlarge people’s experience and are part of what turns a group of people into a community. Funding for these organisations is put at risk with Brexit. Liberal Democrats will ensure that we continue to invest in our cultural capital. We will: Maintain free access to national museums and galleries.

Move towards introducing ‘safe standing’ at football clubs, requiring the Sports Grounds Safety Authority to prepare guidance for implementing this change.

Support anti-racism and anti-homophobia campaigns in sport.

Protect the independence of the BBC and set up a BBC Licence Fee Commission, maintain Channel 4 in public ownership and protect the funding and editorial independence of Welsh language broadcasters.

Protect sports and arts funding via the National Lottery.

Examine the available funding and planning rules for live music venues and the grassroots music sector, protecting venues from further closures. × × Close

Our Plan for a Green Society and a Green Economy Applies to:





The UK should be leading the world in tackling the climate emergency. We are the first generation to know we are destroying the environment, and the last generation with a chance to do something about it before it is too late. There is no Planet B. If we fail to act, millions of people – at home and abroad – will suffer the impacts of floods, storms and heatwaves, rising food prices and the spread of diseases; the global financial system will be destabilised, poor countries could collapse and the number of refugees will soar. The Conservatives have shown themselves unfit to lead in response to this historic challenge. They have repeatedly flouted EU limits on air pollution and scrapped energy efficiency schemes that would reduce energy bills and end the scourge of fuel poverty. They have cut support for renewable energy while trying to force fracking on communities that don’t want it. They are not on track to meet the UK’s climate targets and are dragging their feet on reducing the use of plastics. They promised to restore the natural environment, but have presided over declines in many species of wildlife, and repeatedly failed to meet air and water quality goals. Meanwhile, Labour’s policies are a distraction from meaningful action on the environment. They want to spend billions to renationalise the companies running the electricity grid, the water industry and the railways. But this would not only be enormously disruptive and ruinously costly; it would be pointless, as in reality, ambitious environmental and consumer aims can be achieved through tougher regulation. A socialist planned economy is no way to tackle the environmental crisis. The failures of Conservatives and Labour are not only morally indefensible but economically illiterate. Climate change and the collapse of natural systems are huge crises but they also represent a massive opportunity to create a different future, where people breathe clean air, drink clean water and use clean energy, where communities and industries live in harmony with nature, not at its expense. We need a new government with the vision and the will to seize that opportunity. Liberal Democrats offer a new plan to innovate our way out of crisis. To mobilise every community in the country, and the resources of both the public and private sector to achieve it. To turn the birthplace of the industrial revolution into the home of the new Green Revolution. The Liberal Democrats have the thought-through, deliverable plan for that new Green Future – in place of the Dutch auction of fantasy dates for Britain to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions offered by the other parties. We will deliver a ten-year emergency programme to cut emissions substantially straight away, and phase out emissions from the remaining hard-to-treat sectors by 2045 at the latest. Our first priorities in the next parliament will be: An emergency programme to insulate all Britain’s homes by 2030, cutting emissions and fuel bills and ending fuel poverty.

Investing in renewable power so that at least 80 per cent of UK electricity is generated from renewables by 2030 – and banning fracking for good.

Protecting nature and the countryside, tackling biodiversity loss and planting 60 million trees a year to absorb carbon, protect wildlife and improve health.

Investing in public transport, electrifying Britain’s railways and ensuring that all new cars are electric by 2030. × × Close

Climate Action Now Applies to:





The climate emergency can only be tackled effectively by ensuring that every relevant decision taken by national government, local councils, businesses, investors, communities and households makes progress towards the net zero objective. We will set a new legally binding target to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2045 at the latest, and implement a comprehensive climate action plan, cutting emissions across all sectors. To realise these goals, we will: Require all companies registered in the UK and listed on UK stock exchanges to set targets consistent with the Paris Agreement on climate change and to report on their implementation; and establish a general corporate duty of care for the environment and human rights (also see Better Business section p.21).

Regulate financial services to encourage green investments, including requiring pension funds and managers to show that their portfolio investments are consistent with the Paris Agreement, and creating new powers for regulators to act if banks and other investors are not managing climate risks properly.

Establish a Department for Climate Change and Natural Resources, appoint a cabinet-level Chief Secretary for Sustainability in the Treasury to coordinate government-wide action to make the economy sustainable resource-efficient and zero-carbon, and require every government agency to account for its contribution towards meeting climate targets.

Establish UK and local Citizens’ Climate Assemblies to engage the public in tackling the climate emergency.

Create a statutory duty on all local authorities to produce a Zero Carbon Strategy, including plans for local energy, transport and land use, and devolve powers and funding to enable every council to implement it.

Guarantee an Office of Environmental Protection that is fully independent of government, and possesses powers and resources to enforce compliance with climate and environmental targets.

Increase government expenditure on climate and environmental objectives, reaching at least five per cent of the total within five years.

Support investment and innovation in zero-carbon and resource-efficient infrastructure and technologies by creating a new Green Investment Bank and increasing funding for Innovate UK and new Catapult innovation and technology centres on farming and land use and on carbon dioxide removal.

Implement the UK’s G7 pledge to end fossil fuel subsidies by 2025, and provide Just Transition funding for areas and communities negatively affected by the transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions. × × Close

Renewable Energy Applies to:





Thanks to Liberal Democrat policies in government, the UK has made major strides in cutting emissions from power generation; wind power is now the cheapest form of electricity generation. Now we can go further: we aim to decarbonise the power sector completely, supporting renewables and household and community energy to create jobs and cut fossil fuel imports. We will: Accelerate the deployment of renewable power, providing more funding, removing the Conservatives’ restrictions on solar and wind and building more interconnectors to guarantee security of supply; we aim to reach at least 80 per cent renewable electricity in the UK by 2030.

Expand community and decentralised energy, support councils to develop local electricity generation and require all new homes to be fitted with solar panels.

Ban fracking because of its negative impacts on climate change, the energy mix and the local environment.

Support investment and innovation in cutting-edge energy technologies, including tidal and wave power, energy storage, demand response, smart grids and hydrogen.

Provide an additional £12 billion over five years to support these commitments, and ensure that the National Infrastructure Commission, National Grid, the energy regulator Ofgem, and the Crown Estate work together to deliver our net zero climate objective. × × Close

Warm Homes and Lower Energy Bills Applies to:





Everyone should be able to afford to heat their home so that it is warm enough for them to live in. However, an estimated 2.5 million households in England live in fuel poverty, where they cannot afford to heat their homes to a decent standard partly due to poor insulation and heat loss – contributing to climate change and causing ill-health and early deaths. We will implement an emergency ten-year programme to reduce energy consumption from all buildings, cutting emissions and energy bills and ending fuel poverty – and generating employment – supported by investing over £6 billion a year on home insulation and zero-carbon heating by the fifth year of the Parliament. We will: Cut energy bills, end fuel poverty by 2025 and reduce emissions from buildings, including by providing free retrofits for low-income homes, piloting a new subsidised Energy-Saving Homes scheme, graduating Stamp Duty Land Tax by the energy rating of the property and reducing VAT on home insulation.

Empower councils to develop community energy-saving projects, including delivering housing energy efficiency improvements street by street, which cuts costs.

Require all new homes and non-domestic buildings to be built to a zero-carbon standard (where as much energy is generated on-site, through renewable sources, as is used), by 2021, rising to a more ambitious (‘Passivhaus’) standard by 2025.

Increase minimum energy efficiency standards for privately rented properties and remove the cost cap on improvements.

Adopt a Zero-Carbon Heat Strategy, including reforming the Renewable Heat Incentive, requiring the phased installation of heat pumps in homes and businesses off the gas grid, and piloting projects to determine the best future mix of zero-carbon heating solutions. × × Close

Green Industry, Green Jobs and Green Products Applies to:





Given the right support, British businesses have the chance to be world leaders in green technology. UK low-carbon businesses already have a combined turnover of £80 billion and directly employ 400,000 people, and under our proposals these will grow. We will provide support for innovation to cut energy and fossil fuel use in industrial processes – reducing emissions, cutting dependence on fossil fuel imports and generating jobs and prosperity. We will: Reduce emissions from industrial processes by supporting carbon capture and storage and new low-carbon processes for cement and steel production.

Provide more advice to companies on cutting emissions, support the development of regional industrial clusters for zero-carbon innovation and increase the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund.

Expand the market for green products and services with steadily higher green criteria in public procurement policy.

End support from UK Export Finance for fossil fuel-related activities, and press for higher environmental standards for export credit agencies throughout the OECD. The successful economies of the future will be those which adopt ‘circular economy’ techniques, cutting resource use, waste and pollution by maximising recovery, reuse, recycling and remanufacturing. This will cut costs for consumers and businesses, protect the environment and create new jobs and enterprises. We will introduce a Zero-Waste and Resource Efficiency Act to ensure that the UK moves towards a circular economy, including: Banning non-recyclable single-use plastics and replace them with affordable alternatives, aiming for their complete elimination within three years, as a first step towards ending the ‘throwaway society’ culture and an ambition to end plastic waste exports by 2030.

Benefitting consumers through better product design for repairability, reuse and recycling, including extending the forthcoming EU ‘right to repair’ legislation for consumer goods, so helping small repair businesses and community groups combat ‘planned obsolescence’.

Introducing legally binding targets for reducing the consumption of key natural resources and other incentives for businesses to improve resource efficiency.

Extending deposit return schemes for all food and drink bottles and containers, working with the devolved administrations to ensure consistency across the UK.

Establishing a statutory waste recycling target of 70 per cent in England, extend separate food waste collections to at least 90 per cent of homes by 2024, and strengthen incentives to reduce packaging and reduce waste sent to landfill and incineration. × × Close

Saving Nature and the Countryside Applies to:





A healthy natural environment, where people breathe clean air, drink clean water and enjoy the beauty of the natural world, lies at the heart of the society and the economy Liberal Democrats want to create. Yet nature is under threat: unsustainable farming practices are depleting the soil and, together with air and water pollution, contributing to a rapid decline in the numbers of insects, birds and other animals. One in seven UK species are at risk of extinction. We will protect the natural environment and reverse biodiversity loss at the same time as combating climate change. We will support farmers to protect and restore the natural environment alongside their critical roles in producing food, providing employment and promoting tourism, leisure and health and wellbeing. We will: Introduce a Nature Act to restore the natural environment through setting legally binding near-term and long-term targets for improving water, air, soil and biodiversity, and supported by funding streams of at least £18 billion over five years.

Combat climate change, and benefit nature and people by coordinating the planting of 60 million trees a year and introducing requirements for the greater use of sustainably harvested wood in construction.

Invest in large scale restoration of peatlands, heathland, native woodlands, saltmarshes, wetlands and coastal waters, helping to absorb carbon, protect against floods, improve water quality and protect habitats, including through piloting ‘rewilding’ approaches.

Reduce basic agricultural support payments to the larger recipients and redeploy the savings to support the public goods that come from effective land management, including restoring nature and protecting the countryside, preventing flooding and combating climate change through measures to increase soil carbon and expand native woodland.

Introduce a National Food Strategy, including the use of public procurement policy, to promote the production and consumption of healthy, sustainable and affordable food and cut down on food waste.

Support producers by broadening the remit of the Groceries Code Adjudicator and supporting them with access to markets.

Significantly increase the amount of accessible green space, including protecting up to a million acres, completing the coastal path, exploring a ‘right to roam’ for waterways and creating a new designation of National Nature Parks.

Give the Local Green Space designation the force of law.

Protect and restore England’s lakes, rivers and wetlands, including through reform of water management and higher water efficiency standards, and establish a ‘blue belt’ of marine protected areas covering at least 50 per cent of UK waters by 2030, in partnership with UK overseas territories.

Create a new ‘British Overseas Ecosystems Fund’ for large-scale environmental restoration projects in the UK Overseas Territories and sovereign bases, home to 94 per cent of our unique wildlife.

Establish a £5 billion fund for flood prevention and climate adaptation over the course of the parliament to improve flood defences, and introduce high standards for flood resilience for buildings and infrastructure in flood risk areas.

Ensure that sustainability lies at the heart of fisheries policy, rebuilding depleted fish stocks to achieve their former abundance. Fishers, scientists and conservationists should all be at the centre of a decentralised and regionalised fisheries management system. Immigration policy should also be flexible enough to ensure that both the catching and processing sectors have access to the labour they need.

Increase the budget for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, ensuring that agencies such as Natural England and the Environment Agency are properly funded. × × Close

Improving Transport Applies to:





Britain’s transport systems are broken. Commuting by rail is expensive, unreliable and unpleasant, and away from the major commuter routes, buses, trams and trains are so infrequent and expensive that cars are essentially made a necessity. This in turn has made air pollution – mostly caused by cars – one of the biggest causes of preventable illness in the UK, causing at least 40,000 premature deaths a year and costing the NHS £15 billion. And surface transport is now the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the UK, with almost no progress in reducing them since 1990. The UK’s share of international aviation and shipping emissions has risen by almost 80 per cent since 1990. Liberal Democrats will meet this challenge by: Investing in public transport, buses, trams and railways to enable people to travel more easily while reducing their impact on the environment.

Placing a far higher priority on encouraging walking and cycling – the healthiest forms of transport.

Accelerating the transition to ultra-low-emission transport – cars, buses and trains – through taxation, subsidy and regulation. Together these steps will tackle the clean air crisis, meet the challenge of climate change, improve people’s health, stimulate local and regional prosperity and develop British zero-carbon industries, with benefits for jobs, growth and exports. × × Close

Clean and Green Applies to:





To achieve our net-zero climate target by 2045, we aim to reduce emissions from surface transport to near zero; at the same time the transition to electric vehicles and from private to public transport will drastically cut air pollution. Emissions from the UK’s share of international aviation are much more difficult to tackle; we need to accelerate the development of new technologies and cut demand for flying, particularly from the 15 per cent of individuals who take 70 per cent of flights. We will: Accelerate the rapid take-up of electric vehicles by reforming vehicle taxation, cutting VAT on EVs to 5 per cent and increasing the rate of installation of charging points, including residential on-street points and ultra-fast chargers at service stations. We will ensure that, by 2030, every new car and small van sold is electric.

Pass a Clean Air Act, based on World Health Organisation guidelines, enforced by a new Air Quality Agency. The Act will enshrine the legal right to unpolluted air wherever you live.

Extend Ultra-Low Emission Zones to ten more towns and cities in England and ensure that all private hire vehicles and new buses licensed to operate in urban areas are ultra-low-emission or zero-emission vehicles by 2025; we will provide £2 billion to support this transformation.

Shift more freight from road to rail, including electrifying lines leading from major ports as an urgent priority, and amend the current HGV road user levy to take account of carbon emissions.

Support innovation in zero-emission technologies, including batteries and hydrogen fuel cells, supplementing government funding with a new Clean Air Fund from industry.

Reduce the climate impact of flying by reforming the taxation of international flights to focus on those who fly the most, while reducing costs for those who take one or two international return flights per year, placing a moratorium on the development of new runways (net) in the UK, opposing any expansion of Heathrow, Gatwick or Stansted and any new airport in the Thames Estuary, and introducing a zero-carbon fuels blending requirement for domestic flights. × × Close

Reducing the Need for Car Travel Applies to:





Liberal Democrats will invest in public transport, improving its reliability and affordability, reform the planning systems to reduce the need to travel and promote cycling and walking. We will: Give new powers to local authorities and communities to improve transport in their areas, including the ability to introduce network-wide ticketing, like in London.

Implement, in cooperation with local authorities, light rail schemes for trams and tram-trains where these are appropriate solutions to public transport requirements.

Restore bus routes and add new routes where there is local need; we will provide £4.5 billion over five years for this programme.

Introduce a nationwide strategy to promote walking and cycling, including the creation of dedicated safe cycling lanes, increasing spending per head five-fold to reach 10 per cent of the transport budget.

Build on the successful Local Sustainable Transport Fund established by the Liberal Democrats when in government, and workplace travel plans, to reduce the number of cars – particularly single-occupancy cars – used for commuting, and encourage the development of car-sharing schemes and car clubs and autonomous vehicles for public use.

Amend planning rules to promote sustainable transport and land use. × × Close

Fixing Britain’s Railways Applies to:





There is enormous scope to improve Britain’s railways, providing reliable and affordable train services and cutting emissions. The Tories’ and Labour’s ideological obsessions – the former with privatisation, the latter with nationalisation – only serve to get in the way of making real improvements through investment and regulation. We will improve the railways, reform the franchising system and improve services to customers. We will: Freeze rail fares for commuters and season ticket holders for a parliament, while we fix our railways.

Extend Britain’s rail network, improve stations, reopen smaller stations and restore twin-track lines to major routes.

Convert the rail network to ultra-low-emission technology (electric or hydrogen) by 2035, and provide funding for light rail and trams.

Support High Speed 2, Northern Powerhouse Rail, East-West Rail and Crossrail 2, but ensure far tighter financial controls and increased accountability to ensure that these projects are value for money, and address problems with implementation to ensure that HS2 opens as early as possible to meet our decarbonisation goals while minimising the destruction of precious UK habitats and woodland.

Start a revolution in rail franchising by opening up the bidding process to public sector companies, local or combined authorities, not-for-profits and mutuals – which have the potential to deliver much better services than private operators.

Build into new rail franchise agreements a stronger focus on customers, including investment in new stations, lines and modern trains.

Create a new Railways Agency to oversee the operations of the railway network, removing the Department for Transport from day-to-day decision-making.

Be far more proactive in sanctioning and ultimately sacking train operators if they fail to provide a high-quality public service to their customers.

Improve the experience of people who rely on the railways for work by investing in commuter routes and the integration of rail, bus and cycle routes.

Fix the broken fares and ticketing system so that it provides better value for money.

Improve disabled access to public transport via the Access for All programme. × × Close

Animal Welfare Applies to:





Liberal Democrats believe that all possible steps should be taken to promote animal welfare and prevent animal suffering, with better protection for animals, and full regard for animal welfare. We will: Enshrine the principle of animal sentience in UK law to ensure that due regard is paid to animal welfare in policymaking.

Introduce stronger penalties for animal cruelty offences, increasing the maximum sentencing from six months to five years, and ensure that the National Wildlife Crime Unit is properly funded.

Ban the sale of real fur, end the use of primates as pets, clamp down on illegal pet imports and establish an independent regulatory body for horse welfare to prevent the abuse and avoidable deaths of racehorses.

Improve standards of animal health and welfare in agriculture, including a ban on caged hens, and promote the responsible use of antimicrobials.

Develop safe, effective, humane, and evidence-based ways