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Nick Clegg risks rift with George Osborne as he rules out £10bn cuts for schools

 
Promise: Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has said he will protect education budgets
Joe Murphy @JoeMurphyLondon|Political Editor
16 June 2014

Nick Clegg today fired a warning shot at Chancellor George Osborne by declaring £10 billion of education spending off-limits to future Tory cuts.

The Deputy Prime Minister announced that the entire education budget for children aged from two to 19 would be “ring-fenced” from austerity savings in any coalition after the 2015 election.

Some £3 billion of spending on early years education would be protected, along with £7 billion for sixth form colleges and some apprenticeships. His manifesto announcement, at a Westminster press conference, was calculated to put distance between the Liberal Democrats and their Conservative coalition partners.

It means the Liberal Democrats edge closer to Labour, who are expected to propose higher borrowing and limited tax rises rather than just cuts.

“We believe education should be properly funded because education is the core of a liberal society,” said Mr Clegg. “Money invested in our children is the best investment of all because education really can transform lives.”

He also claimed credit for higher spending on nurseries and infants from low income homes.

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Lib Dem sources admitted that they knew of no current threat to spending on nurseries or post-16 education from George Osborne. The Chancellor has pledged to find another £25 billion of cuts after 2015 but has welfare benefits in his crosshairs rather than schools.

Mr Clegg denied he was trying to warm up relations with Ed Miliband by making manifesto announcements that pointed to more relaxed borrowing. He insisted: “It will not be written with an eye to what Labour or the Conservatives think or might sign up to. It will be written with an eye for what Britain needs.”

Mr Clegg brushed aside renewed speculation about his leadership being under threat, saying he would not be a good leader if some people did not oppose him. But grass roots members in Nottingham have voted for the national party to hold a leadership election. It is the first branch to heed rebel peer Matthew Oakshott’s call for a leadership challenge.