Rivals for the Liberal Democrat leadership have set out their plans for local government.

Nick Clegg told The MJ: ‘Councils must be set free from the grip of Whitehall. I will campaign for fair votes for local government in Wales and England, as we achieved in Scotland. And I will fight to reduce the burden of inspection that ties the hands of councils trying to do the best for local people.'

Chris Huhne said: ‘Councils must be empowered to improve recycling rates locally, or Britain will soon run out of space for landfill.'