SHADOW chancellor John McDonnell’s decision to set out a different approach rather than simply different policies from those of George Osborne is a master stroke.

His insistence that “austerity is not an economic necessity. It’s a political choice” smashes Westminster orthodoxy and prepares the way for an economic alternative.

He and Jeremy Corbyn have a battle to persuade the electorate that reducing the deficit can be achieved without huge cuts to public expenditure.