The two main political parties are failing to spell out the consequences of their general election proposals, financial experts have warned.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) says the Tories’ stated aim of balancing the budget by the mid-2020s would likely require more spending cuts or tax rises even beyond the end of the next parliament.
Labour, says the IFS, are proposing to increase spending to its highest level in 30 years, but under their plan they would not raise enough money to pay for it .
IFS director Paul Johnson said: ‘In one sense the two main parties have rarely offered the British such a clear and substantial choice.
‘One is promising relatively low levels of spending, tax and borrowing, while the other is promising a much bigger state.
‘But neither is being really honest with the public.
‘It is likely that the Conservatives would either have to resort to tax or borrowing increases to bail out public services under increasing pressure, or would risk presiding over a decline in the quality of some of those services, including the NHS.
'Labour’s commitment to a much bigger public sector would require higher taxes that affect many of us.
‘A bigger state than the one we have been used to is perfectly feasible as many countries have demonstrated, but Labour should not pretend that such a step-change could be funded entirely by a small minority at the very top.’
