"The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community and in which no-one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity."

These are the web pages of Peter Black the Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for South Wales West.

Peter Black and Charles Kennedy at the Swansea Medical School

As part of Wales’ first Partnership Government the Welsh Liberal Democrats showed that they have what it takes to govern. They brought over a 100 policies to the table and implemented the vast majority of them. These included the introduction of grants for Welsh students, free school milk for infants, 500 more nurses and doctors and 100 new medical training places. In opposition they are equally focussed on making the Assembly work for Wales. They fought the Assembly election campaign on the themes of attacking poverty, building communities and creating opportunity.

Amongst the policies they were promoting were further cutting Welsh class sizes to no more than 25 so as to increase the time a teacher is able to spend with each pupil. They also argued for extending free personal care to the elderly so as to reduce

bed-blocking in Welsh hospitals and enable patients to receive appropriate care in their own home or a suitable rehabilitation unit without bankrupting them. Welsh Liberal Democrats argued strongly that if we are to reduce youth annoyance then we need to give youngsters a reason to get off street corners and engage in meaningful activity that will do them good without hitting the pockets of their parents. One way of doing this is to extend free access to sports centres at certain times for young people. These policies and the many others in the manifesto are all made in Wales for Wales.

Peter Black and First Minister, Rhodri Morgan on Radio Wales

Since going into opposition after the 2003 Assembly elections we have been influential in helping to alleviate the impact of top-up fees on Welsh domiciled students studying in Welsh universities (the Assembly will rebate £1,800), in fighting for three year funding for schools, for key-workers housing, for greater transparency in the way that the merged quangos will be run after April 2006 and more powers for the Assembly.

Liberal Democrats at the UK level are going from strength to strength. Following the 2005 General Election they have a record 62 MPs and are recognised as the effective opposition to New Labour in Westminster. In Wales they gained two seats in Cardiff Central and Ceredigion and are the second largest Welsh Parliamentary Party/ They control or help run Councils throughout the UK, including Cardiff, Swansea, Bridgend, Wrexham, Conwy and Powys.

Liberal Democrats nationally have been campaigning for the abolition of tuition fees, for free personal care for the elderly and for the scrapping of Council Tax in favour of a local income tax based on people’s ability to pay. They have also been fighting to keep local Post Offices and to save the Pension Book. They want to increase tax on incomes over £100,000 to fund higher pensions and higher education. In the General Election they fought on ten specific pledges:

Putting patients first - cut waiting times

Free personal care when you need it - no one forced to sell their home for care

No tuition fees, no top-up fees - university affordable for every student

More investment in rural and urban schools - spend the Child Trust Fund money where it matters most

500 more police on the streets - cutting crime and the fear of crime

£25 more on the pension every week at 75 - 50,000 Welsh pensioners off means-testing

Axe the Council Tax - Local Income Tax is both fair and affordable

We should not have gone to war in Iraq - it is time to restore trust in the Government

Take the environment seriously - cut pollution, cut congestion and boost renewable energy.

A Welsh Parliament - giving Wales the tools to do the job