A LIB Dem activist from Ellesmere Port was delighted to see the income tax threshold raised to £10,000.

Last week Chancellor George Osbourne introduced the policy in his budget, lifting the lowest paid out of the burden of income tax.

Elizabeth Jewkes, of Summertrees Road, Great Sutton – who ran for MP of Chester at the last election – came up with the idea in 2008.

Writing for the Liberal Democrat Voice website, Ms Jewkes, a mum-of-four who works in business improvement for a utility company, said: “Jo Swinson MP sent an email to Women Liberal Democrats (WLD) asking for policy ideas.

“Soon after I attended my local regional conference and met Vince Cable. I asked him if there was any reason the income tax threshold couldn’t be raised to the level of the minimum wage. ‘Ah,’ he said, ‘that’s my ultimate dream’.”

“I suggested to WLD that I look at this and they agreed. As an MP, Jo had access to the costings figures and she agreed to ask the Treasury questions on my behalf.

“I prepared a set of proposals looking at how far we could raise the threshold. Raising it to the level of the then minimum wage, then £11,552, would cost £29bn.

“I had a photo taken with Nick Clegg and introduced myself, admitting that my tax policy was in opposition to his. I was taken aback when Nick said he was supporting my proposal as it would help much more people than his. Suddenly I realised we were on to a winner.

“I wrote a policy motion, calling for the income tax threshold to be raised to the level of the national minimum wage and in May, WLD, along with several local parties submitted it for discussion at the 2009 Autumn Conference.

“In July, I was astonished to see Nick Clegg on the news, announcing the Liberal Democrat’s new tax policy – the first £10k earned would be tax free. I’d succeeded.”

But Ms Jewkes is not content to stop with the threshold at £10,000.

She added: “The next challenge is to get the threshold raised to the level of the national minimum wage and to get it pegged there and we will have permanently improved the income of the lowest paid in Britain as well as putting money back in the pockets of 26 million people.”