A Unite/Mori student survey carried out in January 2004 on voting intentions gives the Lib Dems a leading share of 34%, with Labour on 28% and the Tories third on 19%. Students will have a major impact in 2005, as the elections are expected during the university year, on May 5, unlike in 2001 when the elections fell during the holiday period.
Commenting on the launch of an online map to tell homeowners about flooding risks in England and Wales, Norman Baker MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow Environment Secretary, said:
Liberal Democrat Leader Charles Kennedy today launched the Liberal Democrat Pre-manifesto - the first important stage in the manifesto process, which will take the Party into the General Election.
Under new Liberal Democrat proposals police chiefs would sign contracts with local communities setting out how many officers they would deploy. The "minimum policing guarantees" would set funding levels for local police for a rolling three-year period. The guarantees are part of the party's new plans to tackle crime. The plans include using money earmarked for the government's ID card plan to hire an extra 10,000 front line police and 20,000 community support officers.
The Lib Dems have called Surrey County Council's draft County Deal for Surrey bid a 'power gr ab'.
The Lib Dems have criticised the Conservative Leader of Surrey County Council for unilaterally writing to the Government asking for a County Deal for Surrey.
As many as 12% (*average) of hard-pressed families across Surrey face being left worse off when the government end the uplift to Universal Credit next month.
Surrey Lib Dems are calling on the Government to make a more ambitious commitment to resettle refugees fleeing the Taliban, and to give Surrey's Borough and District Councils, as well as the County Council, extra funding to house and support them here.
Surrey Lib Dem members who sit on the select committee for Children, Families, Lifelong Learning and Culture have responded to news that the Good Law Project is taking legal action against Surrey County Council.
Lib Dems have secured support for measures that will result in all care leavers in Surrey being exempt from paying council tax from next April.
