The questions on this page all concern topics that Salisbury voters have shown a lot of interest in. For each question, Yvonne has set out her answer and comments fully and honestly. So if you want to know her position on any of the following topics, we hope that you will find an answer here, and that you will find her viewpoint persuasive.

• Tax
• Transport
• Schools
• Lib/Lab
• Families
• Crime
• Health
• Tony Blair and William Hague
• Drugs
• Europe.

If you want to know Yvonne's views on any political area not included on this page, please feel free to e-mail her.

TAX AND SPENDING
In view of the high rates of tax we are experiencing and an estimated surplus of £10 to 15bn, how can you justify a proposed increase of 1p on the basic rate of tax for education?

In our Liberal Democrat policy briefings and documents you will always see the words "if necessary" before mentioning the 1p increase in tax.

You are quite right that this Labour government has large surpluses. They have been a tax-and-save government and are only now, close to a General Election, spending or promising to spend our taxpayers' money.

It is my personal view that the next government would not have to raise taxes to enable it to spend more on our vital services such as health and education. I believe that we need to improve the management of our funding to public services, ensuring that the taxpayer gets value for money by reducing bureaucracy and streamlining tiers of local government, thus ensuring that the maximum money is spent at the point of service.

I want Britain to remain at the leading edge and for us to do this we need a well-educated, well-trained work force. Unfortunately, from my experience as a school governor, mother and in my professional life in the recruitment industry, I have found that our education system is often lacking in delivery and I will fight to make sure that this is improved.

I am totally committed to making sure that our future generations are properly and appropriately educated, trained and best prepared for the highly competitive environment we face.

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TRANSPORT
You were against the Salisbury by-pass, but the increase in the through traffic makes a by-pass essential. Park and Ride and the minor proposals will do little or nothing to improve this problem?

Park and Ride is only a small part of the Liberal Democrats alternative transport strategy.

I want to make it very clear I never believed, mainly because of funding and environmental issues, that the A36 by-pass (as proposed before the last general election) would be constructed and that we should therefore work to find alternatives to ease the traffic problems of Salisbury constituency. This was proved correct as just weeks before the last general election a government document was leaked and John Gummer, the then Environment Minister, was minded not to give approval. The by-pass would not have been constructed if the Conservatives had won the last general election.

What saddens me greatly is that Salisbury has been in this state of limbo over the by-pass for so many years. During this time the Conservative MP, of eighteen years, has been Roads Minister and has still not been able to achieve a solution for our constituency. My biggest fear is that if the Conservative candidate is returned, this will delay any more progress for 10 to 15 years.

Since Labour took over in 1997 they promised that Salisbury should be treated as a "special case" and undertook a traffic study, the results of which have recently been published. But what is discouraging is that our "special case" status appears to have completely disappeared. We now have to bid for funding alongside all the other road schemes in the country and from the latest government announcements they are looking at only some of the problems, putting very serious problems such as the Wylye Valley on the backburner.

The Liberal Democrats believe that we must address the traffic issues in Salisbury now and have had a transport strategy with a number of proposals since before the last general election.

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I do believe in a high-quality Comprehensive education system. But this requires proper funding, well-trained teachers, appropriate resources for books, equipment and well-maintained facilities. Over the years our schools have generally not had the level of resources they have needed to provide our children with the tools to prepare them for the ever-changing world of work in a very competitive global environment.

That said, Salisbury has excellent schools and it is not just for me, or for any politician, to decide the future of these schools. It is for the parents of the children attending these schools and the parents of children who will be attending these schools when they reach the appropriate school age, as well as the education professionals and school governors.

The Conservative-led County Council is currently looking at reviewing the Middle School system in the Salisbury area. I believe that if, and I stress if, any review is necessary then that review should include the whole system in the Salisbury area and this would obviously mean that the selective education system would be debated. Any decisions should include a ballot to the parents and other individuals as I have said.

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This question raises a number of issues, but perhaps the most important issue is that of my own political belief, philosophy and loyalty.

I do not believe that any politician of any political persuasion can put his/her hand on their heart and say they agree with everything that their chosen party believes in. I am a Liberal Democrat and have been a Liberal for as long as I can remember.

I have chosen the Liberal Democrat Party, as it is the Party that most closely mirrors my beliefs, of putting people first, of caring for those in society who cannot look after themselves. Of encouraging and enabling people and businesses to thrive. It believes in freedom for the individual liberated from an overbearing Government. Excessive laws and regulations have grown relentlessly under the last Labour administration and therefore the Liberal Democrats are also the Party that would allow me to be independent and stand up for the people who elected me.

I believe in democracy including effective opposition. I want to have a fair voting system so that every voter feels that his or her vote counts. Currently we have a Labour Government with a huge majority, yet the Labour Party received less than 42% of the vote. In Salisbury, we have an MP that received only 42% of the vote. That means that nearly 6 out of ten people wanted something different.

After the next general election it is quite possible that the Liberal Democrats will hold the balance of power as they do in Scotland, Wales, and in Europe. The opinion polls show that Labour's majority is set to decline and the Conservatives will not form the next Government.

With our current voting system we have limited choice. In Salisbury with the voting statistics as they are the choice is either a Liberal Democrat or a Conservative becoming your next MP. All I ask is that you consider that choice carefully and vote tactically if you are convinced that it is time for change and a progressive agenda. Don't take our word for it—take a look at the new (and much publicised) tactical voter website.

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I entirely agree with your stance on the family. I also believe that strong families create stable environments.

I do feel that people travelling further to their place of work and less secure work environments has created considerable pressure on family life. I am also sure that the large number of people who, through work or other circumstances, move away from the place they were born and therefore from their relations has had an impact. An example of this is the young mother who would in times gone by have had an experienced relation at hand to help with a newborn baby and siblings, and now often feels isolated with relatives many miles away.

No political party can prevent the expansion in the global economy, nor should it. However, governments should provide the infrastructure to enable people to thrive. The Liberal Democrats would support the family unit with our policies in the following ways:

• Support free quality nursery education for every child over three whose parents want it
• Invest in education and training to prepare people for a flexible work environment
• Abolish student tuition fees
• Protect our environment, by increasing investment in public transport and making sure that the polluter pays
• Be honest about taxation; no taxation without explanation
• Increase the number of nurses and doctors in the NHS
• Increase the number of police
• Give free eye tests and dentist tests
• Freeze prescription charges
• Increase the weekly old age pension by £5 at 70. £10 at 75 and £15 at 80.

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CRIME
What do you think you could do, if elected, to curb 'yob' crime, hooliganism, vandalism and all the minor offences that the Police seem incapable of dealing with?

The first thing that I would like to see is more police on the beat. The Liberal Democrats have been promoting this policy for many years and unfortunately the police numbers have decreased under both the Conservative and now the Labour Governments. As an aside I would like to see a review in the way that the police pensions and compensation are funded, because they are currently funded out of the annual budget and this creates an enormous drain on resources.

Much of the 'petty' crime committed is to support either a drug or alcohol habit. I do believe we need to have better education (see education policy) for our school children and also better information more readily available for parents. Many parents do not recognise the signs of either alcohol or drug abuse until it is too late. We also need to have the support in place for when things do go wrong, when it is needed. It is little use having a person admit to being an alcoholic or a drug addict and then put them on a waiting list. They need the help and support straight away.

I do believe that young people respond well to being given responsibility, I do not support the Labour Government's idea to have a curfew on children under sixteen . Children need to be supported in an appropriate environment and I would like to see more work with schools, youth groups, libraries, and homework clubs.

Finally, I believe that crimes need to be punished, but with the support needed to prevent re-offending.

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HEALTH
Whilst realising the NHS has real problems, what new policies do you advocate to improve matters?

I do not necessarily believe that throwing money at a problem cures it. I know that the more money you give to the NHS, the more it can spend. Neither do I accept that rationing is an answer.

I believe that we need to take the politics out of the health debate and have a radical and frank cross-party review of the entire NHS. I believe that we need to increase the number of nurses and doctors employed in the NHS. We must also look at nurses' pay and conditions of employment. Often nurses become "Agency" nurses to earn a higher wage and have more flexible hours. This is an added cost to the NHS and creates a "Catch 22" scenario with fewer trained and qualified nurses available for employment.

I also believe that we need to invest in preventative medicine and the Liberal Democrats would introduce free eye tests and dental checks to assist this. We will also freeze prescription charges.

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THE OTHER PARTY LEADERS
If elected, what will be your views on Tony Blair or William Hague, both of whom I cannot stand?

I do not know Tony Blair, I only see the media spun version that his spin doctors want us to see. I do not like what I see, but in my experience of political life as well as in my business life I have always been able to get on with people and work with them. I don't think it will be very different with Tony Blair. If I believe in what he says on a particular issue, I will support it. When I disagree I will stand against him with constructive criticisms and arguments.. William Hague despite his best efforts clearly has been unable to unite his party or form an effective opposition. It has fallen to the Lib Dems to become the de facto opposition, who brought to light Labour sleaze by exposing Messrs Mandelson and Vaz.

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DRUGS
The Liberal Democrats want to legalise cannabis. I don't agree with this at all. I think drugs are dangerous and should never be legalised. Have you ever taken drugs?

The Liberal Democrats do not have a policy to legalise cannabis. We had a debate several years back (I think 5 or 6 years ago) at our main party conference. The media sensationalised this and many people misunderstood our policy and thought that we had voted to legalise cannabis. Our policy is to have a Royal Commission.

I have never taken illegal drugs and as far as I am aware neither have my two teenage children. But I do know that they have been offered them. I do not think we can avoid a proper discussion on drugs. Too much crime is committed to feed drug addiction. The supply chains are international and extremely professional and sophisticated and we ignore the subject at our peril.

Now that both Labour and the Conservatives are having the same debate that we had several years ago, I am hopeful that we can have cross-party agreement to a Royal Commission. This will bring in the many partners that deal with the results of drug abuse—the Police, Health, Probation and Prison Service, Education etc.—and we can learn from other countries experiences. Only in this way will we get the information required for a mature debate on a very serious subject.

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EUROPE
The Liberal Democrats are too pro-European for me, all you want to do is get us in to the Single European Currency. I want to keep the pound. Why can't we keep the pound?

I wouldn't say that the Liberal Democrats are pro-European. But they do recognise that there are strategic issues that need to be debated in a European and global forum. We want a more democratically run Europe, not a Europe run by commissioners who are often failed MPs and unelected, and therefore unaccountable with no restriction on their term of office.

I believe that the media has a great deal to answer for when it comes to Europe, with much myth and propaganda fuelled by both the Tories and Labour who want all the power at Westminster, yet criticise Europe for making any strategic decisions.

I do not believe that it is for politicians alone to decide whether we enter the Single European Currency. There will always be arguments for and against. I believe that ii is for the population to decide by referendum, after an informed debate. The Conservatives are denying the citizens of Britain that right, by pre-deciding our fate; and Labour are no better. The Liberal Democrats are the only party that has been promoting an early referendum on the Single Currency as policy.

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