The Preamble to the [Liberal Democrat] Party Constitution is as good a summation of my own political philosophy as any I could write “…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 is enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity."  

Our role is to make the dream expressed in those words a reality here in Britain. Too many people are trapped by their place of birth, their upbringing, their circumstances into a life where their potential cannot be fulfilled. This is a waste, not just to the person concerned but for all of us as we do not benefit from the contribution those who are trapped can make to the wider society