Axe the Tax Campaign Taken to 10 Downing Street

12.02.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 12th May 2004

Adrian Collett and Rosalyn Harper (both second right) outside 10 Downing Street just before handing in the petitions, with Edward Davey MP (under the "10" of No. 10) and other Liberal Democrat campaigners

Local Liberal Democrat Prospective Parliamentary Candidates Adrian Collett (Aldershot) and Rosalyn Harper (Surrey Heath) took petitions calling for Council Tax to be abolished and replaced by a fairer system based on ability to pay, to 10 Downing Street on Tuesday 11th May.

They joined Edward Davey MP, who is spearheading the Liberal Democrats' national Axe the Tax campaign, and other Liberal Democrat campaigners, in presenting over 35,000 signatures to 10 Downing Street. Many of these signatures were collected locally.

This follows a recent Axe the Tax event in Camberley Town Centre and a visit by Edward Davey to north east Hampshire as part of his barnstorming campaign. Local Liberal Democrat campaigners conducted local opinion polls in Aldershot, Camberley, Farnborough, Fleet and Yateley and also collected several hundred signatures.

Edward Davey MP campaigning to Axe the Tax in Aldershot on 24th April 2004

On top of that, however, nearly 1,000 households throughout Aldershot and Surrey Heath Constituencies had individually sent back petition slips from local Liberal Democrat newspapers.

Adrian Collett said: "Council Tax is unfair to those on fixed incomes such as pensioners, and those on low incomes, as it does not reflect ability to pay. It's becoming increasingly clear that it's got to go!

Liberal Democrat MPs and campaigners outside Parliament before taking the Axe the Tax petition to Downing Street (Adrian Collett can be seen between Charles Kennedy MP and Edward Davey MP)

It is based on 1991 valuations of house prices, so it's well out of date. It's also very costly to collect, costing two-thirds of a billion pounds last year alone. It is time the Government listened to what the people of this country are telling them about this and many other issues!"

Rosalyn Harper said: "The response was phenomenal. People were signing up from all over both constituencies. Only the Liberal Democrats are campaigning to scrap council tax, and only the Liberal Democrats have a positive alternative. Council tax is now Britain's most unfair tax and it's time it was replaced with a fair tax related to people's ability to pay."