
| Labour | Conservative | Lib Dems | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Savings |
Raise the annual ISA limit in line with inflation. Make it easier to transfer ISAs by issuing portable account numbers. Boost savings for low & middle income households. Maintain Child Trust Funds. |
Stop Child Trust Funds contributions to all but the poorest 1/3 households. Continue Child Trust Funds contributions for disabled children. |
Stop Child Trust Funds contributions. Increase the income tax threshold so more people pay less tax on savings. Open a UK Infrastructure Bank offering stable returns on investment in government bonds. |
|
Banking & lending |
Make basic bank accounts available to all. Introduce portable account numbers to make switching easier. Stop credit card companies increasing credit limits and interest rates without notice. Turn the Post Office into a 'peoples' bank' that will offer a range of competitive and affordable financial products. |
Set up a new Consumer Protection Agency to protect bank customers & penalise banks that break the rules. Introduce clearer cost illustrations on credit card statements. Ban excessive interest rates on store cards & introduce a 7 day cooling off period. Ensure no one is made to sell their home to settle unsecured debts of less than £25k. |
Ban unfair bank charges on unauthorised overdrafts and failed transactions. |
|
Home owners |
2 year suspension on stamp duty for first time buyers on homes under £250,000. Maintain the Home Buy Direct scheme. Maintain the current level of assistance for home owners struggling with repayments. Review current council tax bands. |
Permanently increase the stamp duty threshold to £250,000 for all first time buyers. Stop Home Information Packs. Build on the current shared ownership schemes. Give local communities a say in the type of developments carried out in their area. |
Replace council tax with a local tax based on ability to repay. Provide individuals with empty homes a grant or cheap loan to renovate them. |
|
Pensions |
Restore the link between average earnings & the state pension from 2012. Introduce automatic enrollment in occupational pensions and Personal Pension Accounts for all employees. Increase the state pension age for women to 65 by 2020 & to 68 for both men & women by 2046. |
Restore the link between average earnings & the state pension. End the obligation to buy annuities at 75 years of age. Support auto-enrollment in occupational pension schemes. Review the date at which the state pension age rises. |
Scrap the compulsory retirement age. End the obligation to buy annuities at 75 years of age. Annually update state pensions by the higher of the average increase in earnings, the increase in prices or 2.5%. |
|
Tax |
Increase National Insurance contributions by 1% in 2011. Freeze the basic, higher and new top rate of tax throughout the next Parliament. Freeze inheritance tax thresholds until 2014 - 2015. |
Stop the planned increase in National Insurance for those earning under £35,000. Freeze council tax for 2 years. Raise the inheritance tax threshold to £1million. Stop tax credits for families with household incomes over £50,000. |
Increase the income tax threshold to £10,000. Tax capital gains at the same rate as income. |