The Rt Hon Stephen McPartland

This is great news for local people, they will have more money, more jobs, more training and more educational opportunities.

I am delighted we have frozen council tax, scrapped Labour's fuel duty escalator, reduced fuel duty by a penny, introduced the fair fuel stabiliser and increased personal tax allowances. So in just 9 months the Government has taken 1.1 million people out of tax altogether.

With the pupil premium, funding for apprenticeships and slashing of bureaucracy for small businesses. We are reducing the gap between education and employment at the same time as giving local businesses the confidence to employ local people.

Stephen McPartland
Member of Parliament for Stevenage
23rd March 2011