Burnham refuses timetable for defence spending target

The Prime Minister won't commit to a date for meeting the defence spending target, according to the Daily Mail. Plans to reach the figure will remain under wraps until the spending review next year.

A thinktank has told the government to fund defence spending from a tax rise on middle earners, the Guardian reports. The Independent warns Burnham he will have to raise taxes on middle classes to fund the commitment.

The question is the usual one: which taxes, and on whom. Defence is the one spending commitment both frontbenches agree can't be cut - the disagreement is over who pays. A tax on middle earners hits the vote the government needs to hold; borrowing more pushes the debt interest higher still. The choice is between constituencies, not principles.

The spending review arrives next year. Until then, the target remains a promise without a price.