If the Conservatives win the next election, we will inherit the worst public finances since the Second World War.

And it is a mess of almost unimaginable proportions. We went into the downturn with one of the worst budget deficits in the world. Despite 111 stealth tax rises during his ten years as Chancellor and a decade of economic growth, Gordon Brown massively increased borrowing. The national debt is going to double again to a staggering £1.4 trillion.

People are ready for change, and change is absolutely essential. The Conservatives offer a radically different routemap to recovery, based on savings and ownership, not borrowing and debt. We will build a new low-carbon, high-skilled, productive and balanced economy that will be the engine of sustainable growth for years to come. And we will reform the public finances and system of financial regulation so that no Labour government is able to bankrupt our country again.

Our initial priorities will be stabilising the fiscal position and avoiding Labour’s National Insurance increase – which will hit everyone earning over £20,000 p.a.. To prevent substantial tax rises in the future – tax rises that will hamper the recovery – we must slow the growth of government spending. Our proposals include:

• An end to stealth taxes by delivering a simpler tax code
• Supporting families by recognising marriage in the tax system and ending the couple penalty in the tax credit system which will become simpler and fairer
• Freezing council tax for two years, in partnership with local councils, by reducing unnecessary government spending on consultants and advertising
• Reducing energy bills for millions by enabling them to set up direct debits through their post office account
• Increasing the proportion of taxes collected from green taxation with revenues from new green taxes going into an independently audited family fund to be used to reduce other taxes on families
• Introducing a new carbon levy which will encourage low-carbon energy use and replace Labour’s flawed Climate Change Levy
• Raising the inheritance tax threshold to £1 million, thereby taking the family home of 98% of people out of Inheritance Tax altogether.
• Abolishing Stamp Duty for first-time buyers for home purchases up to £250,000
• Instituting a flat-rate levy on those tax-domiciled offshore which, by a cautious estimate, would raise £3.5 billion a year.

For details on our proposals for business, click on Helping Business Work and for tax plans for savings and pensions, click on Supporting Older People.

In March 2009 Labour reached another grim milestone with unemployment now higher than when they came to power. And the people of Warwick and Leamington are feeling part of this pain - the last figures for this area show an increase of 87% for those on Jobseeker’s Allowance. Behind these statistics are the shattered lives of thousands of people, yet this government is sleepwalking through the crisis. Even now, many people are unable to have the opportunity to retrain until after 18 months of being on Jobseeker’s Allowance, effectively making it much harder to find a way back into work. The Conservatives’ priority will be to make it easier, quicker and simpler for the unemployed to gain new skills during the recession. Click on Employment and Training to read about our plans.