Ed Miliband's Promises to Britain

"People sometimes say that they don't know what we — what I — stand for, so I'll put this in the simplest terms I can, John. This country is too unequal, and we need to change it.

So here are the promises I'm making to you about the kind of Britain I will lead:

First, I will undo the damage the Tories have done to our country:

• I will scrap the Bedroom Tax, which unfairly punishes the disabled and the vulnerable
• I will scrap the Health and Social Care Act, which damages and undermines our NHS
• I will scrap the gagging law, which limits our freedom of speech and right to campaign
• I will reverse the Tories' £3bn tax cut for millionaires, so we get the deficit down but do it fairly

Second, I will take on the powerful vested interests that hold millions back:

• I will force energy companies to freeze gas and electricity bills until 2017
• I will give power back to those who rent their homes, by scrapping letting fees and stabilising tenancy agreements
• I will raise money from tobacco companies, tax avoiders, and a mansion tax to fund doctors, nurses, careworkers and midwives for our NHS
• I will reform our banks so that they properly support small businesses
• I will stop recruitment agencies hiring only from abroad

Third, I will start to rebuild a fairer, better Britain:

• I will raise the minimum wage, to ensure that everyone that does a hard day's work is properly rewarded
• I will promote the living wage by giving tax breaks to companies that pay it
• I will ban the damaging zero-hours contracts that exploit British workers
• I will bring in a lower 10p income tax rate, cutting taxes for 24 million workers
• I will support working parents with 25 hours of free childcare for three- and four-year-olds
• I will help more young people get on the housing ladder by getting 200,000 homes built every year