LONDON (Sputnik), Anastasia Levchenko – A clear economic plan gives the Conservatives their main advantage over the Labour in the approaching general election, the UK Minister of State for Disabled People Mark Harper told Sputnik Wednesday.
"After five years of difficult decisions, hard work and patient sacrifice, Britain is on the right track to a brighter, more secure future. We have achieved this because we have a clear economic plan. The Labour party would put all this progress at risk, so our key message in this: let's not go back to square one," Harper, a Conservative party member, said.
A five-year austerity program, implying substantial public spending cuts, in the United Kingdom was introduced by a coalition of the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats in 2010.
The Conservatives argue that the policy has helped restore confidence in UK economy, reducing the budget deficit twofold since 2010, when it stood at over 10 percent of GDP.
The minister also noted that a new Conservative government will build on the achievements of the outgoing coalition cabinet in its policy toward people with disabilities.
Parties' approach to the issue has taken on extra importance in the run-up to Thursday's UK general election as disabled people account for just under 20 percent of the country's population.
"We have seen some real successes, with 400 more disabled people in work every day in the last year. That is a record I am proud of, and one we will build on if we win the election," Harper said.
The Conservatives have also pledged to ease the transition from education to work and ensuring disabled people have the support they need, according to the minister.
In their manifesto, the Conservatives vowed to reduce the number of people receiving disability benefits "so that help goes to those who really need it."
Mark Harper also claims that Conservative Party will continue to tackle the high level of youth unemployment, should it win the May 7 general election.
According to the minister, the high number of jobless youth was left over by the previous Labour cabinet.
The Conservatives are looking to at least maintain their dominant position in Parliament after Thursday's general election but they face a tough competition from the Labour, who had promised, among other things, to cut tuition fees in a bid to win over younger voters.
"It is important to remember the situation we inherited: youth unemployment rose by 45 percent under Labour. We are turning that situation around, but there's more to do," Harper said.
The minister also noted that the coalition government has been effective in countering youth unemployment as it fell by 151,000 over the past year.
"If you exclude students, then youth unemployment is actually back to pre-recession levels," Harper said.
The previous Labour government, headed by Prime Minister Gordon Brown, saw out the 2007-09 global economic downturn, which led to higher unemployment rates.
The Labour and the Conservative Party are each predicted to get about 33-34 percent of the vote at the May 7 election, meaning that Britain may have another hung parliament for the next five years.
