Liberal Democrats believe that Britain must work together with its partners abroad if we are to have the best hope of meeting the challenges the world faces. We believe in freedom, justice, prosperity and human rights for all and will do all we can to work towards a world where these hopes become reality.

tackling climate change

Climate change is the greatest challenge facing this generation. Liberal Democrats are unwavering in our commitment: runaway climate change must be stopped and politicians must follow the science in order to make that happen. We will set a target for a zero carbon Britain that doesn’t contribute at all to global warming.

Liberal Democrats will:

Set a target for 40 per cent of UK electricity to come from clean, non-carbon-emitting sources by 2020, rising to 100 per cent by 2050, underpinned by guaranteed price support, ensuring that at least three quarters of this new renewable energy comes from marine and offshore sources.

Invest up to £400 million in refurbishing shipyards in Scotland and the North of England so they can manufacture and support offshore wind turbines and other marine renewable equipment.

meeting Britain’s obligations to the developing world

Liberal Democrats are committed to working towards a world free from poverty, inequality and injustice, and meeting the Millennium Development Goals is a vital first step. But beyond this we will also ensure that action is taken to allow developing nations to grow and not to suffer unfairly the effects of climate change inflicted by the developed countries.

a fair deal for our service personnel

The brave men and women of Britain’s armed forces are the most precious military asset we have. They must be treated fairly, with pay and conditions that reflect their outstanding commitment to this country, and properly valued and supported after they leave the services.

standing up for Liberal values around the world

Liberal Democrats will put British values of fairness and the rule of law back at the heart of our foreign policy. British people used to be proud of what our country stood for. But Britain’s reputation has been damaged by unscrupulous arms deals with dictators, allegations of involvement in torture, and of course the disastrous and illegal invasion of Iraq.

We will also give greater support to conflict prevention – which saves money and saves lives.