With the general election now only days away, it’s time to really think about where your vote will go! Young people aged 18-24 have the power to change the way the government is run; don’t let a lack of knowledge affect your vote. Putting your tick in a box does make a difference, so don’t let your voice go unheard. This is the third general election since 2015 so let’s make this one count! So, with that in mind here is a rundown of the parties’ top priorities for this election.
CONSERVATIVES
Leader Boris Johnson
Top priorities
Bring back the Withdrawal Agreement Bill to Parliament before Christmas to achieve Brexit by the end of January
£20.5bn additional funding for the NHS in England by 2023-24, 50 million more GP appointments and 50,000 more nurses
20,000 more police officers over the next three years in England and Wales
No rises in income tax, National Insurance contributions or VAT
Introduce an Australian-style, points-based immigration system, which treats everyone equally regardless of where they come from
LABOUR
Leader Jeremy Corbyn
Top priorities
£400bn national transformation fund, including £250bn for energy, transport and the environment, and £150bn for schools, hospitals and housing
£75bn for 100,000 new council homes a year by 2024 and 50,000 affordable homes a year through Housing Associations
Free full fibre broadband for every home and business in the UK by 2030
£10-an-hour minimum wage for all workers
Hold another referendum on Brexit
LIBERAL DEMOCRATS
Leader Jo Swinson
Top priorities
Stop Brexit, which the party argues will release money to be spent on public services over the next five years
£20bn a year for five years to tackle climate change
1p rise in income tax to invest in health and social care, allowing the NHS budget to be increased by £26bn a year by 2023-24
Recruit 20,000 more teachers and increase school funding by £10.6bn a year by 2024/25
£130bn investment in infrastructure
GREEN
Leaders Jonathan Bartley, Sian Berry
Top priorities
£100bn a year for a decade to tackle climate change – mainly paid for by borrowing
Net-zero carbon emissions in the UK by 2030
Pursue a “green new deal” including a “structural transformation” of the way the economy works
Create more than a million new jobs through green investment
Introduce a People’s Vote Bill to implement another referendum on Brexit – will campaign to Remain
BREXIT PARTY
Leader Nigel Farage
Top priorities
Leave all institutions of the EU and restore the primacy of UK law
Negotiate a free trade agreement with the EU, similar to the deals the bloc has with Canada and Japan, with a new deadline of 1 July 2020
Leave the EU and move to World Trade Organisation trading rules if a free trade agreement cannot be struck
£200bn spending programme on infrastructure, wi-fi and services for young people
UKIP
Leader Patricia Mountain
Top priorities
Leave the EU immediately with no deal
Cut immigration to low, sustainable levels
£5.4bn a year for 30,000 more doctors and 40,000 more nurses
Education in schools to focus on making the UK self-sufficient
PLAID CYMRU
Leader Adam Price
Top priorities
Second referendum on Brexit
Devote an extra 1% of GDP to green investment over 10 years, giving Wales a share worth £15bn
£20bn for a Welsh “green jobs revolution”, investing in renewable energy, transport infrastructure and digital services
Lift children out of poverty via new payments for children in low-income families, and a “once in a generation” £300m boost for education
