Queen's Speech 2009

Today’s Queen’s Speech has set out the next steps in Building Britain's Future.

Central to the speech was that government can be a force for good – to secure the economic recovery and build a fairer society.

Our vision of the future for Britain is optimistic – Britain has great reserves of strength and talent which can be unlocked.

On the economy we will bring in measures to strengthen economic growth and lock in the recovery, laying the foundations for the green, digital economy of the future, as the same time as we take the tough choices necessary to halve the deficit.

We will also ensure responsibility from bankers and secure financial stability, so that greed and risk taking can never again damage the living standards of Britain's families.

We will reform and renew our public services - building on the achievements of the last 12 years to guarantee that people across the country get the high standards of health and education they deserve.

A new National Care Service will be built, securing for older people – who have given so much to their country – the right to be properly looked after in old age.

Our Democracy will be renewed. By pushing on with political and constitutional reform we will rebuild trust in a modern, democratic Britain.

Britain faces a choice between a Labour government with an optimistic view of the future of the country – believing that government can be a force for good in securing prosperity, caring for the vulnerable and building public services for everyone – and a Conservative vision for Britain which is fundamentally pessimistic – about a Britain that is broken and with only an age of austerity to look forward to.

The Conservative approach is to abandon the responsibility of government; to let the recession take its course; and to leave people to sink or swim.