Oliver Letwin will today pledge to reduce the rate of growth in public spending.

The shadow chancellor will say that increases in public spending would slow dramatically under a future Conservative administration.

Ahead of a major policy announcement later today, Letwin vowed that increases in public spending would be at least one per cent lower than the rate of economic growth.

Letwin will also pledge to maintain spending on health and education, despite cutting the overall budget by £35 billion, and will make no promises on future tax cuts.

Interviewed in the Guardian, John Reid, the health secretary, says that Letwin's health proposals would give a few people "an exit visa to queue-jump outside the NHS" at the taxpayers' expense.