Brown: Tories pose risk to NHS

Gordon Brown has insisted that Labour's promises on NHS treatment are "on the ballot paper" at this General Election as he seeks to emphasise the dividing lines between Labour and the Tories on public services.

Visiting a health centre in a marginal Yorkshire seat, the Prime Minister tried to take on David Cameron over the "risk" the Conservative leader posed to the NHS, schools and policing.

Talking about Labour's pledges on access to GPs and getting cancer test results within a week, Mr Brown said: "The guarantees for the health service are an issue. They are going to be on the ballot paper, because we want to continue these guarantees, we want to step them up during the next Parliament.

"It's the way the health service shows it's individually helping the patient and it's a guarantee that can be enforced."

The Tories' policies on public services meant "there is a risk to these health guarantees, there is a risk to schools, there is a risk to policing and of course there is a risk to the recovery", he added.

The Prime Minister was talking to journalists on the campaign trail in Leeds North West, a three-way marginal seat currently held by the Liberal Democrats. He also spoke about the upcoming televison debates and banking regulations.