As this General Election looms closer the choice is becoming all the clearer; by voting Labour you are not only voting to end ideological Tory austerity, but you’re also voting for Labour’s vision of a brighter future for all of us -; a Britain for the many, not the few.

Tory austerity has brought upon us a crisis in funding across the public sector, from the NHS to local councils, social care to policing, schools to firefighters and many more. Add to that a disastrous programme of ideologically-driven policies and proposals such as the Bedroom Tax, rises in university tuition fees, returning to selective education, the Dementia Tax, privatising Royal Mail, scrapping the winter fuel allowance, abolishing the education maintenance allowance, lowering taxes for the richest, bringing back fox hunting, letting tax avoiders and evaders get away with it -; the list goes on and on.

Labour offers a credible, equitable and fair alternative. By undertaking a number of reforms, and by asking those with the broadest shoulders (the top 5%) to pay a bit more, we will be able to bring in new measures to help the lives of everyday citizens. We will lift the public sector pay cap, recruit 10,000 more police officers, introduce a £10 per hour minimum wage, improve social security, properly fund the NHS, clamp down on tax havens, introduce a National Education Service, abolish university tuition fees, halt hospital closure plans, protect the triple lock on pensions, renationalise the rail industry and so much more.

You can find out more about our policy proposals for a fairer Britain in our manifesto here: http://www.labour.org.uk/index.php/manifesto2017

All of this is fully costed, through a mix of increased taxes on those who can pay more to fund day to day spending (95% of people won’t pay more), and borrowing at low interest rates to fund capital spending. This forms a key part of our Fiscal Credibility Rule -; we will only borrow to invest, not to fund day to day spending. This is best practice across the world, and is backed up by leading macroeconomists. The other parts of the Fiscal Credibility Rule include closing the deficit on day to day spending and making sure government debt is falling by the end of the next parliament.

You can find out more about the Fiscal Credibility Rule here: http://www.labour.org.uk/page/-/Images/manifesto-2017/Fiscal-Credibility-Rule.pdf

Our tax and spending commitments are broken down here: http://www.labour.org.uk/page/-/Images/manifesto-2017/FUNDING-BRITAINS-FUTURE.PDF

You can find out more about our Tax Transparency and Enforcement programme here: http://www.labour.org.uk/page/-/Images/manifesto-2017/TAX-AVOIDANCE.pdf

Moving on to local matters, here in Bristol West we have had a brilliant MP in Thangam Debbonaire, with a great track record of representing the constituency both at home and in parliament. Ranging from the refugee crisis to rail infrastructure, tackling homelessness to voting against Article 50 and a hard Brexit, Thangam has been an ardent campaigner for social justice and a great voice for Bristol West.

In the recent Metro Mayor election, whilst it was disappointing that Labour didn’t win, it was great to see us come a close second. In Bristol West, Labour’s support was clear -; we came first by a good margin and the Green Party came a clear third to the austerity-enabling Liberal Democrats. This result, added to her policies and track record, proves that Thangam Debbonaire is the progressive choice for Bristol West.

You can find out more about Thangam, what she’s been doing as your MP, and her views on a range of issues on her website: http://debbonaire.co.uk/

You can also find out more and contact her through the following:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/debbonaire/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thangammp

Email: thangam_debbonaire@labour.org.uk

Remember -; a vote for any of the minor parties risks letting the Tories in. Only a vote for Labour can return MPs and a government committed to creating a Britain for the many, not the few.