David Cameron conference speech: Prime Minister makes play for lapsed Labour voters

Mr Cameron tackles prison reform, equality and social mobility – and says Jeremy Corbyn ‘hates’ Britain

David Cameron gives his keynote speech to delegates on the final day of the Conservative Party Conference (Getty Images)

David Cameron put tackling Britain’s biggest social problems at the heart of his agenda for the next five years as he signalled his determination to shift the Conservative Party on to political territory vacated by Labour under Jeremy Corbyn.

In his keynote speech to the Tory conference in Manchester yesterday, he promised to drive up standards of social care, reform prisons, tackle racial discrimination and improve social mobility in his second term in office. He also announced new powers to investigate and shut down madrasas that teach extreme Islamist ideology.

The Prime Minister also praised Britain as the “proudest multiracial society on earth” – a day after Home Secretary Theresa May dismayed some senior Conservatives with a strongly worded warning of the perils of mass migration.

Mr Cameron, who led the Conservatives to a surprise overall majority at the general election, argued that the previous Coalition Government had achieved a strengthening economy and growing employment levels.

But he added: “To make Britain greater, we need to tackle some deep social problems – problems we only just made a start on as we focused on the economic emergency that faced us.

“The scourge of poverty, the brick wall of blocked opportunity, the shadow of extremism hanging over every single one of us. A greater Britain doesn’t just need a stronger economy – it needs a stronger society.”

He said the party had a historic opportunity to speak for the majority of the population following the election of Mr Corbyn, whom he lambasted for his “security-threatening, terrorist-sympathising, Britain-hating ideology”.

Social reform

His emphasis on social reform marked a return to the platform of “compassionate Conservatism” on which he stood during the party’s leadership contest 10 years ago.

He protested that Britain has the lowest levels of social mobility in the developed world and pledged to tackle the problem by improving educational standards by opening 500 new free schools and turning every school in England into an academy.

Just as we got the best graduates teaching at our schools, let’s get our brightest and best to the front line of social work

&#13; <p>David Cameron</p>&#13;

Setting the party the goal of ending discrimination and fighting for real equality, he said it was “disgraceful” that a job applicant with a white-sounding name was twice as likely to be offered an interview as someone with an “ethnic-sounding” name.

Mr Cameron said the grim prospects facing many children who grow up in care – “the dole, the streets, an early grave?” – shamed the country.

&#13; Samantha Cameron watches her husband deliver his speech in Manchester (EPA)&#13;

He put poorly performing council social services departments on notice that they would be taken over if they failed to improve standards.

“Just as we got the best graduates teaching at our schools, let’s get our brightest and best to the front line of social work,” he told the conference.

Mr Cameron also singled out penal reform as a key priority for the Government over the next five years, arguing that the prison system is “another service run by the state that all too often fails and entrenches poverty”. He declared: “When prisoners are in jail, we have their full attention, so let’s treat their problems, educate them, put them to work.”

Immigration

Theresa May only received a brief name check as the Prime Minister spoke of Britain’s success in integrating new arrivals to the country and listed the ministers from ethnic minority backgrounds occupying senior positions in his Government.

Mr Cameron also said talk of opportunity was meaningless to a Muslim abused for his faith and a black person constantly stopped and searched by police because of their colour.

Extremism

Mr Cameron spelt out plans to tackle the “diseased view” which was “infecting minds” from “Mogadishu to the bedrooms of Birmingham”.

Religious institutions, including madrasas, Jewish yeshivas and Sunday schools which run classes for eight or more hours a week will have to register and face inspections. “In some madrasas we’ve got children being taught they shouldn’t mix with people of other religions, being beaten, swallowing conspiracy theories about Jewish people.

“These children should be having their minds opened, their horizons broadened, not having their heads filled with poison and their hearts filled with hate.”

He said: “Be in no doubt – if you are teaching intolerance, we will shut you down,” he said. He added that Britain had to “play our part” in the fight against Isis in Syria, as the Government moves towards calling a Commons vote to extend RAF air strikes from Iraq.

Labour

Mr Cameron produced his fiercest attack on the new Labour leader, accusing Mr Corbyn of “hating” Britain, seizing on remarks that it was a “tragedy” that Osama bin Laden had been assassinated by US special forces rather than put on trial.

He also ridiculed Labour for giving up “any sensible, reasonable, rational arguments on the economy” with its support for higher taxes, printing money and nationalisation.

A spokesman for Mr Corbyn said: “The fact that David Cameron used his speech to make personal attacks on Jeremy Corbyn is a sure sign that he is rattled by the re-energisation of the Labour Party. With cuts to tax credits and a continued failure on housing, his claim that the Conservatives are the party of working people is being exposed.”

Europe

The Prime Minister rebuffed Tory Eurosceptic pressure for him to spell out his shopping list of demands in his negotiations over returning powers from Brussels to Britain.

He said he was determined not to support any suggestion that the UK should agree to “ever-closer union” – a sign that he has already won agreement on that issue.

However, there was no mention of his other likely demands, such as limiting EU migrants’ access to benefits.

He reassured activists: “I have no romantic attachment to the EU and its institutions. I’m only interested in two things – Britain’s prosperity and Britain’s influence. That’s why I’m going to fight hard in this renegotiation, so we can get a better deal and the best of both worlds.”