Labour has pledged to outspend the Tories by investing an additional £26bn in the NHS to rebuild 'crumbling' hospitals and improve patient care if the party wins the general election.

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell said his party was offering an annual average 4.3pc real-terms increase in health spending over the next four years, which would be used to drive down waiting times and drive up performance.

And Karen Davis, Labour's candidate for Norwich North, said it would help ease the waiting list for treatment at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.

She said: "The number of people waiting longer for urgent cancer treatment has tripled under the Tories - and the terrible impact of cuts on waiting lists is visible here in Norwich too.

"For so many of those patients who have had to wait, there have been weeks of excruciating pain, or humiliating discomfort, or family members taking unpaid leave to care for their loved one.

"You can't trust Boris Johnson with our NHS. But the next Labour government will give our health service the investment it needs for the future."

But health secretary Matt Hancock, who is looking to regain his West Suffolk seat for the Conservatives claimed Labour's plan for a four-day week would cost the NHS a fortune, and said the Tories would "always ensure the NHS is there for you and your family".

The Liberal Democrats said the announcement "misses the point" as Brexit has "already cost the economy as much as £66 billion".

"If (Jeremy) Corbyn had not tacitly supported Brexit, Labour could have funded their NHS plan more than two times over," the party's health spokeswoman Luciana Berger said.

But Nuffield Trust chief executive Nigel Edwards said the funding would mean the NHS could "breathe a sigh of relief", adding: "A 4pc increase a year will make a big difference compared to the 1.4pc average the NHS has grown used to in recent years."

Ms Davis's rivals for Norwich North are Adrian Holmes (Green Party). Chloe Smith (Conservative) and Dave Thomas (Liberal Democrat).

The Brexit Party have withdrawn their candidate Kate Lyons.