 Mr Kennedy was promoting his party's policies in Oxfordshire |
Charles Kennedy said the Lib Dems were the "authentic opposition" to New Labour as he launched his party's pre-election campaign on Monday. The move comes on the same day that the Tories unveiled plans to cut taxes by about �4bn a year.
Mr Kennedy urged voters who had opposed the Iraq war, top-up fees and plans for ID cards to back the Lib Dems.
His party would cut class sizes, scrap the council tax and bring in a 50% rate for people earning more than
�100,000.
 | LIB DEM PLANS Scrap tuition fees Replace council tax with local income tax Scrap child trust funds and use cash to cut class sizes 50% tax for every pound earned over �100,000 Plan to introduce electoral reform to end first past the post |
He said there was "precious little" to choose between the other two main parties.
Later on Monday Tory leader Michael Howard outlined for the first time specific plans to cut taxes if they win the next election.
It follows Sunday's announcement that the Tories had identified �35bn worth of "wasteful" government spending.
Tory co-chairman Liam Fox said voting Lib Dem "meant higher taxes, soft crime laws and more power to Europe".
Lib Dem Matthew Taylor said the Tories had "dropped the ball" and his party was the "only effective opposition".
Mr Kennedy said his party was the "significant challenger" to Labour in northern cities like Newcastle and in the south they were the "principal opponents" to the Tories.
'Common factor'
He claimed his party could save �5bn for each year of a four year parliament.
"That's something that is realistic and that is something we can justify and spell out in some considerable detail."
But Treasury Chief Secretary Paul Boateng said the Lib Dem figures failed to add up and he argued they had not explained where cuts in government spending would fall.
"Today, we have yet another menu without prices," he said.
Party chairman Mr Taylor meanwhile said: "I don't think we, in our wildest dreams, thought that the Conservatives would drop the ball to the extent that they have done, leaving us as the only effective opposition on the war in Iraq, on identity cards, on offering a real alternative to tuition fees, to the enormous rises in council tax."
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At this election people will have a choice between Mr Blair, who will waste more and tax more, and a Conservative government that will give value for money and tax less
