Leader's sights on county seats

David Cameron today declared the West Midlands to be a key battleground in the war to win a possible snap election next month.

Speaking exclusively to the Express & Star, Mr Cameron emphasised the importance of winning Black Country seats for his election campaign to be successful.

When the leader of the Conservative Party was asked if he could win the marginal seats in the Midlands, he said: "I believe that we can.

"Stafford especially is very close to my heart, as I fought there in 1997. I think people from Midlands are the backbone of hard working Britain; hard working, great people who want to do the best for themselves and for their families."

The Tory leader said that he would be making frequent visits up to the West Midlands in the next few weeks in a bid to help secure extra seats.

And Mr Cameron continued by sending out a message to West Midlanders. He said: "We want to give you the power over your lives, and opportunity.

"We are going to help first time buyers in the area, and help you get on the housing ladder by cutting out stanp duty for people who have saved up all of their lives, and who want to pass their homes onto their kids."

He added: "I think people in the West Midlands will really respond to that.

"The Conservative Party have great hopes in not only Stafford, but throughout the whole of the Black Country and West Midlands."

The Conservative leader insisted that he and his party were ready to fight an election whether it comes this autumn or not.

He said he had rejected some of the green taxes proposed by the environment policy review headed by former environment secretary John Gummer and green campaigner Zac Goldsmith, including imposing VAT on domestic flights and rationing families to one flight a year tax free.

He said a Tory government was "not in the business" of taxing people who wanted to get around in their ordinary lives.

By Tom Graham in Blackpool