Tories try to use their lead on the economy to bolster their position on the NHS

The Tories believe that their record in government and their lead on economic competence means that they can set out spending commitments without having to set out precisely how they would pay for them. George Osborne’s interview on Marr this morning was a demonstration of this strategy. Challenged repeatedly over where the £8 billion for the NHS that he and Cameron pledged yesterday would come from, Osborne simply pointed out that they have managed to increase the amount of money going into the health service every year over the last five years despite having to make significant spending cuts.

However much it infuriates their opponents, I suspect that this Tory tactic is quite effective. While having a row about how much more they intend to spend on the NHS quite suits the Tories. Labour don’t know whether to accuse the Tories of having a secret plan to cut the NHS or of making irresponsible, unfunded spending commitments.