Tories commit to raise NHS spending

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Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley suggested that investment in the health service would increase by 2% as a proportion of gross domestic product.

However, such a move could necessitate deep cuts to other areas of public expenditure.

"I think we are bound to have rising real-terms health expenditure," Mr Lansley told The Times newspaper.

"That means that health expenditure is going to be a rising proportion of total public expenditure."

The Tories have already committed themselves to matching Labour's spending plans for the next three years.

But Mr Lansley's comments suggest that some public services would lose out while a larger slice of public expenditure would be given to health.

Such cuts could be especially acute considering shadow chancellor George Osborne's long-term ambition of cutting overall spending as a proportion of national wealth.

Mr Lansley acknowledged that the impact elsewhere would be "tough".