Clegg makes first keynote speech
Updated on 12 January 2008
The new Liberal Democrat leader has announced his vision for schools and health in his first keynote speech.
Speaking at the London School of Economics, Nick Clegg attacked the Prime Minister for failing to call an early election last year.
Mr Clegg, who is the third Lib Dem leader in two years, told the party faithful: "Gordon Brown's bottling of the Autumn election has handed us a tremendous opportunity."
Focussing on education and the NHS, Mr Clegg said it was the Government's job to ensure funding is distributed fairly but after that "the state must back off".
He said the Lib Dems wanted to improve standards in schools and would abolish the lowest GCSE grades, saying: "It's time to call a fail a fail."
The Sheffield Hallam MP added that NHS patients should be guaranteed treatment within a minimum time.
Patients should be encouraged to take control of their own health budgets, he added.
But there was a promise that a Lib Dem election victory would not mean a tax hike to pay for reform.
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