Clegg pledges funding for NHS commitment

Deputy pm: Lib Dems will meet the £8bn target set

Nick Clegg has insisted he will not lead his party into government without clear commitments from a larger party for full and fair funding of the NHS.

The Liberal Democrat leader said it was a “red line” for his party to ensure any new administration will by 2020 meet the £8 billion-a-year target set by NHS England boss Simon Stevens.

The Conservatives have endorsed the figure but faced claims they have not shown where the money will come from.

Mr Clegg issued a call to Labour leader Ed Miliband to match the pledge.

He said: “I have a message for Ed Miliband. You might say you love the NHS – the NHS doesn’t need warm words, it needs hard cash.

“So Ed Miliband, put your money where your heart is. That is what the Liberal Democrats will do.

“We know how much money the NHS needs. And we have got a plan, a fair plan, including the wealthiest in society making an additional contribution through the tax system, to make sure our NHS is properly funded.

“I cannot be clearer: this is a red line issue for the Liberal Democrats. The Liberal Democrats will not under any circumstances enter into a new coalition government unless we know exactly how the NHS is going to get the money it needs and how it is going to get that money fairly.”

The Deputy Prime Minister attacked Labour’s “double standards” on the NHS.

“What you don’t hear from the Labour Party is that when they were in charge, they wasted millions of pounds of your money on wasteful private finance initiatives.

“And they have the gall, the double standards, to lecture us about how we should protect our NHS?”