Oxfordshire Tories have staked their claim for overall power in the forthcoming county council elections on an image of an outstretched hand seeking charity.

Party officials launching their election line-up of candidates at the Oxford West and Abingdon constituency headquarters in New Road yesterday were quick to stress that their campaign leaflet showing a grubby paw along with the message 'It's time the begging stopped', was not a party political attack on the city's vagrants and asylum-seekers.

Keith MitchellOxfordshire group leader Keith Mitchell said it was a powerful message to voters that the time had come for the county to be self-sufficient under a majority Conservative leadership.

He said: "We're not talking about begging in the streets here, we're talking about not having to go cap in hand to Government. We want pride in Oxfordshire and equal partnership with Government. We don't want people coming to County Hall asking for services that are their right."

The Tories' manifesto also pledges to 'get Oxfordshire moving' by reviewing the Oxford Transport Strategy, encouraging more free parking, and fighting for all the county's road users.