Archive for the ‘Scottish Conservatives’ Category
Conservatives – Three strikes policy to crack down on benefit fraud
Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Theresa May has announced a new ‘three strikes’ policy to crack down on those who repeatedly defraud the benefits system.
This comes as new analysis reveals that under Labour benefit overpayments due to fraud and error have cost £80 a second since 1997.
“For too long Labour have let benefit cheats play the system, costing the taxpayer millions”, May said.
“It is astounding that since 1997 welfare waste has cost the public £80 every second”.
- In total, Labour have wasted over £30 billion on fraud and error between 1997-98 and 2008-09. £14 billion of that has been wasted on benefit fraud.
- The Department for Work and Pensions has had its accounts qualified for the last 20 years due to the high level of fraud and error in the benefits system
- Between 2004-05 and 2008-09, only 143,838 people have been sanctioned for benefit fraud
The Conservatives have announced new plans to introduce tougher benefit sanctions for those found guilty of benefit fraud. This is about targeting the minority of those who are undermining the integrity of the benefits system.
Those who commit benefit fraud once will lose their out-of-work benefits for three months, a second offence will attract a benefit sanction of six months, and if someone commits fraud three times they face losing their out-of-work benefits for up to three years.
This is a big increase in the penalty, from the current situation where fraudulent claimants lose a maximum of 13 weeks benefit entitlement.
May said the Conservatives will “send out a strong message to people who fleece the taxpayer- you could lose your out of work benefits for three years”.
“This is about fairness. While the whole country is tightening its belt it’s scandalous that thousands are managing to defraud the taxpayer out of billions.”
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Britain: Billions of pounds in the Red thanks to Labour – Annabel Goldie MSP
Annabel Goldie MSP, Scottish Conservative Leader, says:
“Labour’s mismanagement of Britain’s economy has been catastrophic. Debt interest payments alone will soon reach £60 billion, twice the entire amount spent on Scotland’s health service, schools, police, roads and local services every year.
“Scotland’s share of Labour’s debt mountain is an estimated £72 billion. We need a government with a credible plan and the political resolve to put Britain back in the black. The risk of 5 more years of Labour is more waste, higher tax, a worse credit rating, higher interest rates and higher mortgages. Britain is billions of pounds in the red as a result of Labour’s mismanagement of the economy.
“In Scotland, the Conservatives have helped tens of thousands of businesses weather the worst of Labour’s economic storm by ensuring business rates were cut or abolished, a move which the Federation of Small Businesses says has prevented 1 in 8 small firms from going bust.
“We have to deliver that kind of real help right across the United Kingdom.
“That is why a Conservative Government would scrap Labour’s tax on jobs, get credit flowing again, protect and create jobs to boost the recovery, and get to grips with Labour’s debt. Dither and delay would risk the recovery, not help it. The time has come for action, and for change.”
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Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg on election “two horse race”
The rank hypocrisy of Nick Clegg on “two-horse races”
Nick Clegg claimed a couple of days ago that the general election is not a two-horse race.
As the BBC reports, he said:
“This isn’t the old politics of a two-horse race between Labour and the Conservative Party.”
For anyone familiar with Liberal Democrat election literature in their target seats, this claim from their leader will come as something of a surprise.
Take, for example, the below leaflet the party has been distributing in Sheffield Hallam, where the Lib Dem candidate is “local campaigner” and incumbent MP, er, Nick Clegg:
Forgetting the disingenuously skewed graph for a moment, if it’s a two-horse race in Sheffield Hallam on account of the Labour Party starting in a distant third place on 19%, then what difference is there with the national battle at this election – where the Liberal Democrats start a distant third with a similar percentage of the vote and fewer than 10% of the seats?
People of Britain: it’s a two-horse race here – only the Conservatives can beat to win this general election and form a government. Voting Lib Dem only helps the Labour Party remain in office.
Jonathan Isaby
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Jim Ferguson announces launch of political campaign Inverness Nairn Badenoch and Strathspey Highlands Scotland UK
May 6th has now been officially declared as the date of the next General Election.
Over the last two years I have been a serious political Candidate and campaigned hard during this time.
Visiting every area, holding regular coffee mornings and surgeries, canvassing and leading from the front.
The people of this region deserve to be heard and the weakness shown by those currently in office, to properly represent the people of the Highlands needs to come to an end.
My main motivation for standing is to ensure that real support is brought to the Highlands and the people of Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey. My desire to bring the high degree of support that a Conservative Government would bring and to do so it is imperative that this region elects me to represent them in Parliament.
Out of every other Candidate who is standing, only I will have the ability, as a member of the party in power to get the investment and infrastructure to ensure that the businesses and people of this region get the top support they deserve.
All the other Candidates will be in opposition and can only ask what they will of a Conservative Government.
I would remind everyone that I would be the MP of the party in power and it is that thought that I ask you to seriously consider.
This General Election is a clear choice. A vote for any other party will help to keen Gordon Brown in power.
Do you want Gordon Brown for another 5 years or David Cameron as Prime Minister?
I would ask that every person in this region look closely at what I can offer. It’s time to play this to your advantage and ensure this region gets the strongest support from a Conservative Government possible. If you have never voted Conservative before, you need to seriously consider doing so now.
I am not a career politican, I have worked hard all my life with a family business that I started from scratch 16 years ago.
If you invest your trust in me, you can be certain of having an honest and hard working MP who understands what you are all going through and who acknowledges that your concerns and interests are my concerns and interests.
It’s time for change and true representation for the people who live and work in this region.
Make your vote count – there is much at stake!
Jim Ferguson
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May 6th announced as date of General Election UK
The General Election is finally called
Tuesday, April 6 2010
David Cameron has welcomed the official announcement of the General Election date.
The election is a choice between five more years of Gordon Brown’s tired government making things worse - or change with the Conservatives, who have the energy, leadership and values to get Britain moving again.
Speaking to supporters this morning, David Cameron will say that the Consevatives are “fighting this election for the great ignored”.
“Young, old, rich, poor, black, white, gay, straight. They start our businesses, operate our factories, teach our children, clean our streets, grow our food, keep us safe. They work hard, pay their taxes, obey the law”, he will say.
“They’re good, decent people – they’re the people of Britain and they just want a reason to believe that anything is still possible in Britain.”
“This election is about giving them that reason, giving them that hope”.
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Alan Sugar thinks small business are moaners who live in Disney World – Appointed by Labour on April Fools Day UK
Sugar appointment criticised
Philip Hammond has criticised Labour’s announcement that Lord Alan Sugar will lead a new government task force designed to fight the corner of small businesses against the banks.
“Only Labour could announce on April Fool’s day that it had appointed the man who called credit-starved small businesses ‘moaners’ who lived in ‘Disney World’ to be the adjudicator on their applications for bank loans”, he said.
Lord Mandelson has selected Lord Sugar to sit on the task force which will set up the Small Business Credit Adjudicator. Lord Mandelson believes the people he has chosen “… understand the critical importance of new finance and credit flow to the growth of small, innovative companies”.
But Lord Sugar said last year: “The moaners are bust… they don’t need the bank, they need an insolvency practitioner”.
This comes on the same day that the Federation of Small Businesses, the British Retail Consortium and 23 business leaders attacked Labour’s planned tax on jobs.
“No wonder no-one believes Lord Mandelson’s claims to be the champion of small business when Labour would rather tax jobs and the recovery than cut government waste”, Hammond added.
Well this is news that small business can do without. Clearly Lord Alan Sugar has nothing in common with small business and is merely another puppet of Labour.
Jim Ferguson
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Captains of Industry and Business Leaders are Backing the Conservatives UK
Top Business Leaders Back Tories On Tax
9:42am UK, Thursday April 01, 2010
Ruth Barnett, Sky News Online
A group of business leaders have written a letter backing the Conservatives’ proposal to halt a planned rise in National Insurance.
David Cameron described it as a “very important moment in the election campaign”.
The executive chairman of Marks and Spencers, Sir Stuart Rose, and easyJet entrepreneur Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou are among the 23 people to have signed the letter, which is published in the Daily Telegraph.
The signatories employ around half a million workers between them.
They agree with shadow chancellor George Osborne that increasing NI by 1p next April, as Labour plans to do, is bad news for the economy.
“The Government’s proposal to increase national insurance, placing an additional tax on jobs, comes at exactly the wrong time in the economic cycle,” the letter says.
The Labour Party feel that the Conservatives’ plan has not been properly costed and not properly thought through.
Sky’s political correspondent Joey Jones
“In a personal capacity, we welcome George Osborne’s plan to stop the proposed increase in national insurance by cutting Government waste.”
Mr Cameron told BBC Breakfast: “These household names – people like Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury’s and Mothercare – are saying that Labour’s plans to put up National Insurance contributions are the biggest threat to the recovery.
“They are saying there is no threat to the recovery from cutting waste in 2010 but there is a threat to the recovery from putting up National Insurance contributions.
“Labour have said the whole thing is that we can secure the recovery. Well, today that plank of their whole approach has been removed.”
Chancellor Alistair Darling pledged to introduce the rise as a way of paying off some of the nation’s debts.
But Mr Osborne said he would axe the increase for people earning less than £45,000 if his party wins power at the next election. He said he would pay for this by finding efficiency savings worth £12bn.
Mr Darling counters that Mr Osborne’s policy is at odds with the Conservatives’ claim they would cut the deficit sooner and deeper than the Government plans.
Treasury Chief Secretary Liam Byrne said the Conservatives were not able to fund their promise on NI.
“No business goes to its shareholders with unfunded promises – but that’s exactly what the Tories are doing,” he said.
The captains of industry and top business leaders are fully aware of the failure of this Labour Government. They are giving their full backing to the Conservatives, because they know we have the experience and common sense, to get rid of Labour’s crippling debt, but not at the expense of putting more businesses out of action, or risking the creation of new jobs.
Members of the public whose jobs are hanging by a thread need to take note and ensure their vote is for the Conservatives. Another term of Labour could spell disaster for them and everyone else in the United Kingdom.
Jim Ferguson
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Conservatives to offer real help for small business UK
I am pleased to see some real help being promised for small business. Its encouraging that small business is being recognised for the part it plays by the Conservatives who understand the importance of the fact that we are a nation of traders and that small business accounts for 80% of the revenue raised.
Jim Ferguson
Conservative tax reform to aid self employed
Wednesday, March 31 2010
Mark Prisk, the Shadow Business Minister, has announced that a Conservative Government would undertake a full and fundamental review of small business taxation, including IR35.
The aim will be to provide a simpler, clearer and lasting tax regime, so businesses can plan with confidence.
“For the last 13 years, Labour have constantly meddled with the tax rules for freelancers and self-employed, Prisk said. “IR35 has especially proved to over-complex, uncertain and often unfair”.
IR35 has cost business £73 million over 10 years but it has barely raised revenue for the Treasury. Prisk criticised Gordon Brown for making it harder to be self-employed at a time when Britain should be open for business.
“This is why a Conservative Government would mandate the independent Office of Tax Simplification to undertake a fundamental review of current arrangements with the aim of providing a clearer, lasting and fairer tax regime”.
This announcement is in addition to previous plesges to simplify the tax system, cut Corporation Tax for small firms, and make small business rate relief automatic.
“Small businesses cannot afford 5 more years of Gordon Brown”, Prisk added. “Only the Conservatives have the energy and the ideas to get Britain working by boosting enterprise”.
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MP’s and sleaze – more scrutiny for candidates required – Scotland UK
Gordon Brown now leads a discredited Government.
The latest revelations regarding the three Labour MP’s who were caught in a sting operation offering to influence Government policy for money is sickening. Confidence in the members of Parliament is at an all time low as people form the opinion that none can be trusted with even the basic decency of someone expected in such high office.
I find it quite embarrasing to see the greed of people surface like this and ofcourse as a political candidate I feel uncomfortable with the fact that as a political candidate people are looking at me and asking if I am the same. Would I also conduct my self in this greedy dishonest way ?
The answer is no. I am horrified at how far those we trusted to run the country have fallen but perhaps we are also to blame !
Thats right we as in the electorate are also to blame. Let me explain.
Its not political parties who elect MP’s to parliament. Yes they select the candidates but its the people who vote and give those people they elect the mandate to enter parliament.
Perhaps we need to look at what we base our decisions on not only on party policy but to look with a far more critical eye at those we are preparing to vote for.
I believe that the general public need to be very certain that they know exactly where the political candidates stand on the fundamental issues of importance to them and to the good of the country.
Why vote for someone who has never experianced the real working world for example. ? A Career politician who knows noting of the pressures or issues of everday life ? Some career politicians are perfectly capable ofcourse but the question remains valid.
Scrutiny of the candidates views is fundamental to ensuring that only candidates of good character and trustworthiness should enter parliament. If there had been more scrutiny of the candidates themselves and a hard look at what they may have already achieved in life instead of a blind vote cast purely on party lines then I believe we could have avoided a lot of the problems that we have seen.
Patricia Hewitt, Geoff Hoon and Stephen Byers are now disgraced former Labour cabinet ministers who have shown their true nature. What appals me is that these people were involved and sat at the most senior positions in Government. The question is did they conduct themselves in this way while in those positions of power and influence.
Are there more Government ministers on the take ?
As for myself I will stand with the people of the Highlands in this region and give every support and assistance in a truthful and honest way. If I am elected to Parliament then the trust that has been invested in me will not be wasted but I will lead this region with strength and integrity.
I have been involved in business and hold positions of the highest order in other organisations where truth and honesty are beyond doubt.
There would be no distinction made as far as my views on parliamentary affairs are concerned.
The people require politicians who can be trusted and who will assist the country to go forward with honesty, hard work and above all who they can trust.
Jim Ferguson
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Liberal bias of BBC all too evident – Political candidates refused access to public debate Highlands Scotland
BBC BRIAN TAYLOR
As the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Inverness Nairn Badenoch and Strathspey at the forthcoming General Election I was delighted that the BBC had invited the various political parties to attend a live radio show in Avimore in the Scottish Highlands.
A number of us agreed to attend but on arrival despite having been on the list I was refused entry due to the fact I was a political Candidate.
The BBC told me that they had to remain impartial and that Candidates were not allowed in so that no one had an unfair advantage.
However Danny Alexander the LibDem MP who’s seat I am contesting is also a candidate. Not only was he allowed to attend but he was also on the panel. I pointed this out to the BBC, but they refused to listen. When the SNP Candidate arrived we discussed the situation and agreed that we would simply sit in the audience and not take part in the debate. Once again we were refused.
Later I spoke to security staff who had controlled entry to the room where the broadcast was taking place. They confirmed that they had been specifically told to refuse entry to the Labour Candidate Mike Robb as the BBC had been concerned that he was going to disrupt proceedings. I spoke with the hotel staff who also confirmed they were simply acting on instructions from their client.
While I accept that the BBC wish to remain impartial, why on earth then would they allow Danny Alexander to remain on the panel. It would have been easy to arrange to have a LibDem MSP to join the Conservative, Labour and SNP MSP’s who were also on the panel.
Danny Alexander should therefore never have been allowed to attend this event let alone sit on the panel.
With a General Election just around the corner this gave him a distinct advantage and high profile that was denied to the other political Candidates.
The BBC have been accused of left leaning, liberal bias before, but now I have experienced it for myself.
I have written to the BBC demanding a full and detailed explanation as to why they acted the way they did including the political editor Brian Taylor who Chaired the debate.
So far they have not even acknowledged my email.
I am sure that Danny Alexander is relieved. However he will have to face me on the various hustings where there will be no liberal bias allowed.
Bring on the General Election.
Jim Ferguson
Candidates barred from BBC debate
Anger over reception at Aviemore
By Iain Ramage
Published: 22/03/2010
A WOULD-BE Tory politician who was among three election candidates barred from a live BBC lunchtime debate at Aviemore Highland Resort claims they were “treated like terrorists”.
Jim Ferguson, the Conservative candidate for the forthcoming contest for the Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey constituency, is the boss of an Inverness security firm.
Stunned by the reception the trio had on Friday, he has written to the corporation asking for an explanation.
SNP candidate John Finnie and Labour’s Mike Robb were equally amazed to have been refused entry to Brian Taylor’s Big Debate on Radio Scotland despite being on the original audience guest list.
Mr Ferguson said: “We were treated like terrorists. It was totally bizarre.
“I was astonished to have been refused entry to a public debate. I explained that Danny Alexander was the MP, and also a candidate, and asked why he was allowed in and I wasn’t.
“It was embarrassing. It was humiliating. I felt this was absolutely undemocratic and very worrying of the BBC to be allowing the proceedings to happen like that.
“John Finnie and I even offered to observe the debate without asking questions, but they wouldn’t accept that.
“They have given Danny Alexander an unfair advantage.”
Mr Robb said: “I was initially told by the programme’s researcher that I could attend the event. However, I was later called by the programme to say that, as a declared local candidate, I would not be allowed to on the grounds of political impartiality.
“I was astonished to find out that the Lib Dems were to be represented on the panel by local MP Danny Alexander, rather than a Lib Dem MSP.
“He therefore had a platform to put his views to local voters whilst his political opponents at the coming general election were barred from even being allowed in the room.”
Mr Finnie, the opposition SNP group leader on Highland Council, said: “It does seem very peculiar.”
A spokeswoman for BBC Scotland said: “Participants and audiences at our debate programmes reflect our guidelines on impartiality.
“We are confident these guidelines were met.”
Mr Alexander declined to comment.
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