Maybe this will be the issue for the election-cut now or cut later

So now we have the war of the economists.

After last Sunday's pro Tory tacckling the deficit strategy in the Times,comes the FT's pro Labour response.

Far from worrying about what the financial markets will do to our credit rating 60 other economists have signed two open letters backing Labour's policy of delaying spending cuts until 2011.

According to the paper

The letters, while not overtly political, reject the Tories’ claim that cuts are needed now to reassure the markets and head off the risk of Britain losing its triple A credit rating.

The second one in particular will hearten Labour after yesterday's deficit figures for it backs the chancellor’s plan for tackling the deficit, warning that “with people’s livelihoods at stake, a responsible government should avoid reckless actions”.

So the battlelines on the economy are drawn and maybe this will be the issue for the election-cut now or cut later