Lib Dems promise free childcare from nine months old

The 35 hour a week childcare offer would also be open to all two to four-year-olds.

According to the political party, childcare providers would be 'adequately' funded to deliver the places, with the amount of funding meeting actual costs.

The policy would be funded by tax changes, ensuring that big businesses pay their share and aligning the tax treatment of income from wealth with income from work, says the Lib Dems.

To ensure parents have greater flexibility at work, the party would also require employers to advertise jobs flexibly unless there are 'clear' business reasons why they cannot.

Speaking at the party's launch in Battersea today, Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson will say, 'For so many people, the cost of childcare simply makes returning to work impossible. This hurts our economy and deprives our workforce of a vital pool of talent.

'The choice for parents now is simply not good enough. That is why Liberal Democrats are proposing a transformational change to our economy, by providing working parents with free childcare from when their child is nine months old.

'This will close the gap between the end of paid parental leave and the start of free childcare provision. It will finally give parents more choice about when they return to work and unlock their untapped potential for our economy.'