David Cameron grins as he plunges 600,000 more people into poverty
In his leader's speech at the Tory conference yesterday, out-of-touch David Cameron failed to even mention tax credits during a 56-minute address
Grinning: David Cameron will plunge a further 600,000 people into poverty next yearGrinning David Cameron will plunge more than half a million people into poverty with his tax credit cuts, a report warns today.
Think-tank the Resolution Foundation says up to 600,000 people will be pushed below the breadline next year, but this will be “hidden” by changes to the way poverty is defined.
In his leader's speech at the Tory conference yesterday, out-of-touch Mr Cameron failed to even mention tax credits during a 56-minute address.
Instead he delivered vile smears against Jeremy Corbyn as a "Britain-hating" terrorist sympathiser and signalled a fresh Tory assault on council housing.
Unite general secretary Len McCluskey said: "David Cameron's legacy will be all too visible to those bracing themselves for the next swing of the Conservative cuts' axe, like the three million low-waged families about to be stripped of more than a £1,000-a-year."
Labour's shadow cabinet office minister Jon Ashworth added: "For all the talk of making life better for people, the truth is David Cameron is doing the opposite.
"You can't claim to be in the common ground of British politics when you're cutting the tax credits working families rely on."
Daily Mirror / Andy Stenning
Jeremy Corbyn: He attracted a crowd of thousands at his rally in ManchesterDaily Mirror /Andy Stenning
Boris Johnson: He says he wants to make sure the poorest people are not hitFuture Tory leadership hopeful Boris Johnson stepped up his own attack on the tax credit cuts yesterday by asking his officials in London to draw up plans to help those hardest hit.
"We've got to make sure that as we reform welfare and we reform the tax system, people on the lowest incomes - the hardest-working people - are not hit by these cuts," Mr Johnson told LBC Radio.
"I'm asking my guys in City Hall to look at all the impacts in London to see what we can do, to make some proposals to Government about this.
The London Mayor added: "Concerns have been raised powerfully and I think we need to be... doing everything we can to mitigate and palliate the impact."
Mr Cameron has vowed to press ahead with the latest round of cruel cuts next April despite mounting pressure from Labour, backbench Tories, trade unions and charity campaigners.
In his speech yesterday he dodged the issue entirely while speaking at length about how he wants to help the poor.
"We are going to tackle those big social problems," the hypocritical PM said.
"Central to that is an all-out assault on poverty."
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David Cameron: He claimed in his speech to the Tory Party Conference that the Conservatives would be the ones to do something about povertyAlison Garnham, chief executive of Child Poverty Action Group hit back: "The Prime Minister is absolutely right to recognise that ending UK poverty would be a tremendous social reform.
"What was missing, however, was any recognition that the downward trend in child poverty is set to be turned around by 2020 into the kind of steep rise in poverty we've not seen since the 1980s
"Nor did the Prime Minister acknowledge that the single biggest driver of the oncoming increases in poverty will be tax and benefit decisions made by his Government."
Instead of addressing tax credit cuts Mr Cameron instead confirmed plans for a fresh attack on council housing.
In the future developers will be allowed to build so-called 'starter homes' to sell to first-time buyers instead of new social housing with affordable rents.
But each house will cost up to £450,000 in London and up to £250,000 elsewhere - putting them far out of reach of all but the well-off.
Homelessness charity Shelter said the homes will be unaffordable to average-earners across a staggering 58% of the country.
Shelter chief executive Campbell Robb fumed: "You don't solve an affordability crisis by getting rid of the few affordable homes we're building.
"This announcement confirms our fears that Starter Homes costing up to £450k will be built at the expense of the genuinely affordable homes this country desperately needs."
Mr Cameron's speech was designed to position him as a centre ground Prime Minister following Labour's shift to the Left under Jeremy Corbyn.
But the PM showed his true colours with a vicious right-wing attack on the new Labour leader, claiming he hates his own country.
"We cannot let that man inflict his security-threatening, terrorist-sympathising, Britain-hating ideology on the country we love," Mr Cameron ranted.
By contrast Mr Corbyn has refused to make any personal attacks whatsoever against his Tory rival since his election last month.
A Labour spokesman said: "The fact David Cameron used his speech to make personal attacks on Jeremy Corbyn is a sure sign he is rattled by the re-energisation of the Labour Party."
In a further sop to the Tory Right Mr Cameron announced a new crackdown on madrasas and other religious schools where he warned extremism is being fomented.
All such 'intensive' religious schools where kids spend at least eight hours a week will be ordered to register with the Department for Education and face regular inspections.
"We need to confront extremism," the PM said. "Passive tolerance has turned us into a less integrated country - it's put our children in danger."
The PM also defended his killer drone strikes against British jihadis in Syria and vowed to press ahead with buying new Trident nuclear weapons next year.
But much of Mr Cameron's speech was carefully crafted to make floating voters believe he has revived his 'compassionate Conservative' message of a decade ago.
He promised sweeping jail reforms which could see large numbers of prisoners released on electric tags.
The PM also promised to get tough with failing social care providers and improve adoption rates for kids in care.
And he pledged more action on racial equality and called for greater social mobility for the poor.
"I want us to end discrimination and finish the fight for real equality in our country today," Mr Cameron said.
There was even a stinging slap-down for Home Secretary Theresa May following her ferocious attack on immigrants in her own speech on Tuesday.
"I want all our children to know they're part of something big - the proudest multi-racial democracy on earth," Mr Cameron said.
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