Britannia Radio

I endorse all of the Telegraph's leading article today.  Unless the 
Tories wake up and say something sensible about tax they will not 
deserve to win an election.  They might win nevertheless,  but that 
would be the product of  the voters' revulsion against Brown and the 
Labour Party.

Something definite on other vital issues too is needed too - Energy, 
the Lisbon Treaty and the promised referendum, immigration, and 
regaining our own Foreign Policy for a start.

They must wake up and be positive for a change!

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TELEGRAPH - Leader   10.9.08
Conservatives must be bolder still on tax

Cutting back on wasteful spending and reducing tax will be vital to 
deliver the growth the British economy needs. George Osborne's 
suggestion this week that a Conservative administration will review 
Labour's spending commitments from 2011 is therefore welcome - up to 
a point. Combined with David Cameron's comments at the weekend on 
potential tax cuts for hard-working Britons, there is a sense that 
the Tory leadership has realised at last that economic circumstances 
require that it alters its direction of travel on the economy.

So far, however, the Tories offer only muted mood music rather than a 
bold theme to stir angry voters. Mr Osborne's nuanced position is 
some way short of a coherent commitment to cut spending and the over-
burdensome tax levels imposed by the current Government. It is 
disappointing that, for the first year of a Tory government, he 
remains wedded to Labour's plans. This risks wasting the honeymoon 
period in which the pace of reform should be set.

In his caution, the shadow chancellor is behind the curve and 
responding too slowly to a shift in the public mood. The electorate 
is more than willing to give a hearing to arguments for a smaller 
state that provides better value for money.

After all, many taxpayers are struggling and recognise that a great 
deal of the more than £1 trillion extra Labour has spent since 1997 
has been wasted. In an annual budget of £618 billion, there is 
considerable scope to trim spending without affecting vital services: 
a start could be made by abolishing many of the quangos set up by 
this Government and the accompanying profusion of unnecessary jobs.

The Conservatives are wary of allowing Labour to paint them as the 
"same old Tories" and some will argue that, as they are 19 points 
ahead in the polls, they should sit back and sail quietly into 
government.

That is a dangerously complacent view. At the next election, voters 
will go to the polls looking for genuine change. If the Conservatives 
propose to wait a year before providing taxpayers with breathing 
room, they will offer an extension of economic pain and so undermine 
the possibility of a second term. If they are too timid, they may not 
even get the chance of a first term.

The Conservative conference this month gives Mr Osborne an ideal 
platform to provide a replacement for the Tories' commitment to 
"share the proceeds of growth" between tax cuts and increased 
spending. That is not a winning political slogan now there is no 
growth. He must rise to the challenge and say explicitly that, from 
the very start of a Conservative administration, he will help by 
allowing us to keep more of our money.