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David Cameron: 'There is a clear moral imperative to keep council tax down'
David Cameron has vowed to eradicate council "waste and propaganda," as he launched his party's campaign for local authority elections next month.
He contrasted what he described as excessive salaries and perks for Labour councillors with the "good government" of Conservative town halls.
Elections will be held for 27 county councils and seven unitary authorities in England on Thursday 2 May.
The Tories are fighting to retain major gains made in these areas in 2009.
Labour, Lib Dems and UKIP have already begun campaigning for next month's elections - which also include Anglesey in Wales - while the Green Party also launched their campaign on Friday.
Council taxDuring a visit to Warwickshire, the Conservative leader cited Conservative councils' decision to freeze council tax for the past three years as evidence that the party was on the side of "hard-working people".
There was a "clear moral imperative" for councils to keep council tax bills down, he said during a speech in Nuneaton.
End Quote David Cameron Conservative leaderIf you want good government that costs less - vote Conservative"
The government has encouraged local authorities in England to freeze council tax bills by providing central cash to cushion the cut in real-terms income, although a third of the total have rejected the offer.
"Here in Warwickshire they've frozen council tax - this year, last year, the year before that," he said.
"On average - on a Band D bill, Conservative councils continue to charge lower levels of council taxes than Labour or Lib Dems."
And he attacked the record of Labour local authorities, criticising the pay of top officials in Sheffield and suggesting Durham Council had given their staff an annual £12,000 clothing allowance to spend on "Geordie Armani".
"If you want good government that costs less - vote Conservative," he said. "If you want waste and propaganda - vote Labour. Do not let Labour do to your council what they did to our country."
The Conservative leader said the government had dismantled "all the bureaucracy" surrounding town halls set up by its Labour predecessor.
"We have given councils much more freedom and it is Conservative councils which have run with it."
'On track'Mr Cameron also hailed progress on welfare reform, immigration and cutting income tax, saying the coalition government was "on track" over tackling the country's financial problems and its wider programme of "national renewal".
Natalie Bennett, leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, has also set out her campaign objectives, promising to focus on opposing the government's welfare cuts, supporting low-paid workers and protecting the green belt.
When he launched the party's campaign earlier this month, leader Ed Miliband pledged to "stand up for those without power" while Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg said his party had the "right priorities in tough times".
UKIP leader Nigel Farage has said his party would "establish a bridgehead" in county councils across England and was fielding a record number of candidates.
Nearly 2,500 seats are up for grabs in less than two weeks time in an election which will be closely watched as a barometer of public opinion two years ahead of the scheduled date for the next general election.
Labour are expected to make gains as the seats were last fought for in 2009, when Gordon Brown's government was unpopular nationally.
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