Abbott eyes health, spending cuts

Prime Minister Tony Abbott will lead the coalition to the next federal election with a long-term plan to balance the budget that will include spending cuts to health and education, The Australian Financial Review reports.

According to the newspaper, the cuts will likely be detailed in May's budget, but will not take effect until the last year of the budget cycle which falls after the next federal election,

"We will keep our pre-election ­commitments to maintain health spending and school spending but must reduce the rate of spending growth in the longer term if debt is to be paid off and good schools and hospitals are to be sustainable in the longer term," Mr Abbott told the Australia-Canada Economic Leadership Forum.

The AFR reports Mr Abbott is looking to follow the lead of the Canadian, UK and New Zealand ­governments in rebalancing the budget through cutting taxes, reducing spending growth and tackling ­regulation.