Would that be as opposed to Health, Education and Overseas Aid, all of which are exempt? Whilst I may have some sympathy with education, the other 2 are ripe for some savings measures.
No, it wouldn't. They should not automatically be ring-fenced either, but subject to the same value-for-money scrutiny as every other area of government spending. There may be a valid reason (other than vote-grabbing) why one or other ministry needs more resources at a particular time, but that is for the government of the day to decide at that point. Making promises in advance makes a politician a hostage to fortune.
But just how you manage the NHS for example, goodness only knows. The more successful it is the more cash it requires. Double it's budget today and by 2020 it will be short of cash again.
But I digress. UKIP has just done very well at council level. Even the BBC has noticed them, almost to the point where you would think they had achieved a landslide victory rather than just having inserted a large spanner in the works. Maybe I should go back and read their defence policy more carefully. It might not be as academic as I first thought.
LF