Cameron blooper to benefit Labour

London: During a day of bitter exchanges between the two main parties, David Cameron first suggested the scale of the nation's budget deficit meant tax benefits for being married could not be guaranteed, and then reversed his stance within hours, insisting it was something his government would do in the lifetime of the next parliament.

He had been responding to Labour's detailed 145-page dossier alleging that the Conservatives had "a £34 billion (Dh200 billion) credibility gap", with the chancellor, Alistair Darling, claiming the Tories have so far only shown how they will fund a quarter of 45 billion of their spending promises, including tax cuts.

Cameron dismissed Labour's dossier as "complete junk" and dodgy, but then appeared to sow confusion in his own ranks by saying his earlier totemic promise to guarantee marriage in the tax system was only a hope.

In an attempt to demonstrate his fiscal responsibility, Cameron initially said of his marriage tax plans: "It is something we want to do, something we believe we can do, it's something, within a parliament, I'll definitely hope to do.

"I am not today able to make that promise because we face this vast budget deficit, it is a clear and present danger to our economy. The public understand we cannot make all these promises up front. I think that is a very straightforward and honest way of explaining it."

But within two hours, Cameron rushed out a statement saying: "Recognising marriage in the tax system is something I feel very strongly about and something we will definitely do in the next parliament. We will set out exactly how in due course."

His office admitted he should have been clearer, but denied there was any wider importance to his remarks.

True significance

The Tories insisted the true significance of the day's exchanges lay in Darling's refusal at a morning press conference to deny he may have to cut some departmental budgets by as much as 17 per cent, or to consider increasing VAT after the election.

Government sources hoped Cameron's response may be a first indication that he could crumble under the glare of a sustained scrutiny. They claimed the Tories had not been prepared for such a detailed assault on their pledges so early in the campaign.

Cameron has been reluctant to set out precisely how he will recognise marriage in the tax system and had been hoping to keep his options open until after the election.

The most expensive option is a transferrable tax allowance cost by the Treasury at £4.9 billion, but the shadow chief secretary, Philip Hammond, said he was looking for a cheaper option that "would be affordable initially and then could be expanded later".

Today's confusion will put renewed pressure on Cameron to spell out his plans to help married couples, ahead of the election.

The Cameron wobble came on a day of political hyberbole, cliches and premature electioneering by both main parties designed to give an impression that the election campaign is under way.

The main Tory message to preserve the NHS was repeated on a thousand posters that went up across Britain overnight. On the billboards, a picture of Cameron was accompanied by the slogan: "I'll cut the deficit, not the NHS."

In dossiers and counter-dossiers, the two parties tried to frame their opponent as fiscally irresponsible and unwilling to be open with the electorate.

Darling, at his press conference, claimed the Conservatives had accounted for only around a quarter of the funding needed to deliver their pre-election pledges including £21 billion tax cuts, £13.3 billion reversed tax rises, and a broad promise to cut the £175 billion deficit faster than Labour.