By Steve Bargeton, political editor

TOMMY SHERIDAN yesterday launched the Solidarity Party manifesto for the Scottish elections with ambitious plans to pay people who look after members of their own family.

He said the work of carers is worth around £5 billion a year, and they should be paid an allowance.

“The idea is actually trying to value the carers and the work that they do, instead of taking advantage of their love for their partners or their children,” said Mr Sheridan.

“They save the NHS £5bn a year by doing their work. We think they should have some financial recompense for that.”

Solidarity will campaign to have powers to ban airguns transferred from Westminster to Holyrood so the weapons can be outlawed in Scotland.

Under Solidarity plans council tax would be scrapped and replaced with an income-related Scottish service tax.

The party claims those earning less than £10,000 would pay nothing.

Domestic water charges would be abolished and a new legislation would be put in place to keep Scottish Water in the public sector.

Solidarity would renationalise the railways in Scotland and support a referendum on Scottish independence.

On education, there is a commitment to cut primary school class sizes to an average of 19 pupils, employ and train more teachers, abolish charitable tax relief for private schools and cut school management.

The student graduate endowment would be scrapped and student grants reinstated.

On health, the party would introduce free school meals at a cost of £18 million a year and invest £10 million to improve support for young carers.

The party supports legislation to provide help for drug addicts, including prescribing heroin under medical supervision.

Prescription charges would be abolished at a cost of £46 million per year.

The manifesto calls for the construction of 30,000 new local authority homes in the next three years and a not-for-profit renewable energy corporation for Scotland.

Rents for tenant farmers would be capped and there would be new grants to encourage people into farming as well as incentives for organic farmers.

Scottish Enterprise and local enterprise companies would be scrapped, with the £500 million per year budget used to offset domestic water charges and fund apprenticeships.