COUNCIL tax, the lack of affordable housing, repairs to roads and pavements and rows over recycling will be the key issues for local voters in Southampton this year.

The record of the city's ruling Liberal Democrat administration during its first year in power comes under the voters' spotlight on Thursday.

The Lib Dems will be facing an examination from the other two main parties over shelved plans to introduce night time parking charges in the city centre as well as a controversial scheme to introduce once a fortnight rubbish collection.

They took over running Southampton City Council for the first time in more than 90 years at last May's elections after a 19-year-unbroken period of Labour power.

But opposition parties will claim that the Lib Dems have lurched from U-turn to U-turn during the last 12 months and will be focussing their attacks on a series of policies dropped following public outcry. The roll-out of the controversial rubbish re-cycling scheme was halted by the Lib Dems after an 11th-hour deal was struck with the Labour Group during February's budget-setting meeting.

City bosses are now looking to see if the scheme should be implemented across the whole city.

Other issues likely to be raised by both the Conservative and Labour opposition will be plans to axe some of the city's football pitches, which were also scrapped as well as an equally controversial scheme to shut down St Mary's leisure centre in the city, which was also shelved.

For their part, the Lib Dems will concentrate on their achievements over the past 12 months which saw the group set its first real budget in May.

Liberal Democrats will say that many of the controversial schemes were inherited from the previous ruling Labour group.

The Lib Dems will cite nearly £1m which the group set aside to tackle anti-social behaviour as well as a five-year £18m programme to repair Southampton's roads and pavements.

They are also campaigning to axe council tax and replace it with a local income tax.

Key battlegrounds are likely to be in Labour leader Councillor June Bridle's Sholing ward as well as the Bitterne Park ward.

The three main parties also face challenges from minority parties including The Greens who are standing in Freemantle and Portswood.

The far right British National Party is fielding candidates in five wards and the anti-EU United Kingdom Independence Party is contesting six wards.

The man who spearheaded the campaign to save St Mary's Leisure Centre, Nick Chaffey, is also throwing his hat into the ring in the Bevois ward.