Britain needs a new direction - one that is totally different from Labour

Andrew Lansley, Shadow Cabinet Office Minister

"Britain needs a new direction - one that is totally different from Labour," the shadow cabinet office minister said.

He said that under the Conservatives, Britain would become a competitive economy, free of red tape and high taxes.

Schools would pursue high standards, and respond to the needs of parents, free of local bureaucracy.

Andrew Lansley: backing for Common Sense revolution

And he echoed the day's new new theme, that of Tory support for reviving the inner cities.

"Shameful poverty is to be found within a few miles of the City of London... We must harness the power and budgets of central and local government and the private voluntary sector to work together," Mr Lansley said.

He called for a tough line on crime, with more police, tougher sentences, and community involvement in crime prevention.

Admitting that the Conservatives had lost the trust of the people at the last election, he said: "We can regain that trust, because we will set the people free.

"We will only promise what we know we can deliver."

Listening to the people

Mr Lansley tried to place the Conservatives firmly at the head of a populist taxpayers revolt.

"Taxes are up, and we can't see where the money is going," he told delegates to loud applause.

He said that the Conservatives had backed the popular mood on the pound and on petrol duties.

"We voted to back the pound and against the rise in petrol duty.

"The people responded - some in ways we never expected."

Mr Lansley said that Conservative policies were now firmly in place which would lead the party to electoral victory.

"The Common Sense revolution has put us in the forefront of ideas which will shape the future," he said.

Attacks on Labour

Mr Lansley launched a fierce attack on the Labour Party which "governs for the few, not the many" and was tarnished by sleaze and scandal.

He also criticised his opposite number, Mo Mowlam, for spending more time on chat shows than before the dispatch box. Referring to her decision to stand down at the next election, he said she knew what we know, "that there is no future in the Labour Party".

He praised his former boss, John Major, as a straight-talking politician, in contrast to Tony Blair.

And he amused the delegates with a string of jokes, comparing prominent Labour politicians to household products which should be investigated by trading standards officers.