Liberal Democrat MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale Tim Farron, has call on the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, to raise the lower threshold for income tax to £10,000 in next month’s budget in the latest of the Liberal Democrats efforts to rebalance the tax system to benefit the millions of people of low and middle incomes, instead of the few wealthy millionaires.

The Liberal Democrats are pushing an announcement to be made in Osborne’s third budget on 21st March 2012. This would result in a tax cut of up to £700 a year for millions of people across the UK, as well as lifting approximately 3 million people out of tax all together.

As well as reducing the tax burden of those least able to pay the Liberal Democrats have been working to force the richest and most well off to pay their fair share by stopping inheritance tax cuts for millionaires, increasing Capital Gains Tax, increasing taxes on the banks by an extra £2.5bn every year and maintaining the 50p tax rate for the most well off.

Commenting Tim Farron said: “In this time of national economic hardship the Government really needs to do all it can to support the average earner. For the South Lakes raising the tax threshold would be incredibly beneficial.

“We live in an area which boasts one of the lowest unemployment levels in the country; however a huge proportion of those employed here are living on the minimum wage. With an average salary of less than £24,000 changing the tax threshold would put a great deal back into the pocket of the average South Lakes worker!”