LIB DEM SPIN A CRUEL DECEPTION

The Lib Dems at County Hall have been accused of deliberately misleading the public about the amount of money that they are putting forward to help local people and businesses during the recession.

The Lib Dems announced to great fanfare that their Executive Board at Somerset County Council had committed £5million to the Somerset Economic Recovery Plan. However, a few days later, they had to admit that only £280,000 was new money, with the rest already being in the budget or coming from other organisations.

Commenting on the Lib Dem climb-down, Ken Maddock, Leader of the Conservative Group at Somerset County Council said, "This is a cruel deception. I am all for providing support for Somerset residents and businesses to ease the difficulties that this recession is bringing, but the Lib Dems cannot be allowed to mislead the public in this way."

He continued, "This is the type of thing that we've come to expect from the discredited Labour Government in Westminster, and it would appear that the beleaguered Lib Dems at County Hall are using the same dirty tricks to try to cling to power. No wonder the general public feel unable to trust their politicians. We need honesty and openness, not dishonesty and double talk."

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