The income tax rates for someone on minimum wage crept up many times under Labour. Liberal Democrats in coalition government have already slashed tax by £326 for Britain’s lowest paid.

That is why Liberal Democrats have been overseeing a record expansion in apprentices in the East of England: last year alone, nearly 40,000 people across the region were learning and earning on an apprenticeship – up 68% on Labour’s record.

We’re not stopping there, with a commitment to an additional 250,000 apprentices nationally by 2015.

Nick Clegg: we need fairer taxes to help ordinary people – not tax cuts for the richest

Nick Clegg’s party instead wants to give more help to those on middle and low incomes who need it the most.

Lib Dem Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander said, “At a time when the whole country faces serious financial challenges, the priority needs to be people on low and middle incomes.”

A key part of the coalition agreement was the Lib Dem commitment to making taxes fairer. The Lib Dems are well on their way to delivering on their pledge that no one should pay tax on the first £10,000 they earn.

Nearly a million low paid workers are no longer paying income tax thanks to this. All basic rate tax payers are paying £200 less in income tax.

Each year more and more people on low and middle incomes will gain more thanks to the Lib Dem fairer tax plan.

Danny Alexander said, “Fairer taxes is our goal. I don’t see why, in the next parliament, we shouldn’t be trying to get to a situation where people in a full-time job on the minimum wage are paying no income tax at all.”

This would mean that no one would pay tax on the first £12,500 they earn.

Local campaigner Tony Jebson said, “I’m proud of the fact that, thanks to our policies, so many of the lowest paid no longer pay income tax. But Danny is right: there is more we can do to ensure taxes are fair.”