Forget about the sums. Focus on the policies

Do the Tory figures on inheritance tax and the so-called non-doms add up?

I've no idea. And I don't care.

During the last few election campaigns we have had to endure extremely boring and irrelevant debates about whether the cost of one action and the savings from another completely unconnected action are the same.

Irrelevant? Because the sums are relatively small and whether they match makes no impact on whether either of them can be done. As Jeff Randall points out in a superb column, Gordon Brown announced a range of initiatives in his speech and wasn't asked to cost them. Correctly. Why? Because is obvious that a growing economy can afford a few such changes.

Boring? Because the debate never reaches a conclusion and people can't be expected to understand the details.

If there is an early election, journalists should refuse to get sucked into this "figures don't add up" nonsense again. It is much more important to investigate if the policies themselves - changing inheritance tax for instance - are coherent and a good priority.

That would be a proper debate worth having.