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Shadow chancellor George Osborne has confirmed for the first time that the Conservatives would make significant cuts in public spending.
The Conservative MP also argued that Labour is being dishonest about the extent of the financial crisis.
In an article written for the Times, Osborne said he had until now "tip-toed" around the issue of cuts, but he believed voters deserved a greater degree of honesty.
He said even cuts of 10 per cent in all departments but health and overseas aid may not be enough to restore the country's ailing economy.
Osborne wrote in the article: "We should have the confidence to tell the public the truth that Britain faces a debt crisis; that real spending will have to be cut, whoever is elected, and that the bills of rising unemployment and the huge interest costs of a soaring national debt mean that many government departments will face cuts in their budgets. These are statements of fact and to deny them invites ridicule."
The shadow chancellor outlined some cuts that the Conservative Party would make in government, including ID cards, quango pay and "the cost of politics".
But he declined from making more specific commitments, adding: "We will set out more details in due course.
"And of course some savings will only become apparent when we have the chance to look at the books in government."
He also criticised Gordon Brown for masking Labour's own plans to cut spending.
Meanwhile, Gordon Brown wrote for the Daily Mirror, branding David Cameron "Mr 10 per cent" and warning that the Tories "savage" spending cuts would actually make the recession worse.
Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd