Mike discusses the economy and banking crises with Vince Cable in Milford

12.00.00am GMT Sun 7th Feb 2010

Mike Simpson meets with Vince Cable

Mike Simpson writes, "The newspapers are full of stories about the massive government debt, the banking crisis, student and household debt. There's a terrible personal cost and the next government could easily make it a lot worse. It does not have to be like this. Vince Cable and the Liberal Democrats have consistently got the analysis right over the economy.

We propose a way out which ensures fairness and sustainable growth. 

We must tackle government debt without choking off the economic recovery and we must ensure that the banks can never again hold the country to ransom.

Vince Cable, the Lib Dem Shadow Chancellor, called for the banks to be broken up long before others like Barack Obama. It is essential that the casino-style operations are separated out from retail banking so that if the risky operations get into trouble we can afford to let them bear the consequences of their own foolishness.

We must force the banks we now own to release funds to viable businesses starved of cash.

We must make our tax system fairer. Under our plans no-one will pay income tax on the first £10,000 they earn, meaning millions of low earners and pensioners will stop paying taxes altogether, while millions more will get £700 p.a. back in their pockets. This would be paid for by closing tax loopholes for the richest and introducing a tax on mansions valued at over £2 million."