The Observer view on all three parties promising a spending spree | Observer editorial

Celebrate the end of austerity. But the new cash must be spent wisely

If there was one welcome development from the first week of the election campaign, it was the general acceptance that Britain needs more investment and that the government should pay for it. More than that, the two main political parties now agree that much of this investment should by financed with borrowed money, taking advantage of the ultra-low interest rates that the UK pays on its debts.

It is a moment to celebrate, following almost a decade of austerity, when the main aim of the Treasury was to bring down the government's annual spending deficit at the expense of, among other things, public investment.