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Labour accused of 'moral failure' Cameron: Torture case not one-off
(about 1 hour later)
Conservative leader David Cameron is to accuse Labour of "moral failure" and presiding over a country in both economic and social recession. David Cameron has said the case of two young boys tortured in Doncaster was not an "isolated incident of evil" but symptomatic of wider social problems.
He will pledge to promote marriage and cut red tape for social workers. The Tory leader said the "truly awful" incident meant people must ask "deep questions" about social breakdown.
In a speech, Mr Cameron will mention the case of two brothers sentenced to indefinite detention for attacking two boys in South Yorkshire. In a speech in London, he said this was a seminal incident, likening it to the cases of Baby Peter and Jamie Bulger.
Labour said such cases were "extremely rare" and accused Mr Cameron of "talking Britain down". Labour accused Mr Cameron of "tarring" the people of Britain by "seizing on one absolutely horrific crime".
The brothers, aged 10 and 11 at the time, attacked their victims in Edlington, Doncaster, last April. 'Terrible crimes'
The court has heard how they threatened to kill their victims, then aged nine and 11, stamped on them and attacked them with broken glass, bricks and sticks. Mr Cameron also used the speech to defend tax breaks for marriage, saying the policy was not "outdated" and the Tory election manifesto would be the most "family friendly" a party had ever produced.
'Unpleasant speech' The Tory leader was speaking after two brothers - aged 10 and 11 at the time - were sentenced to a minimum detention of five years for the April 2009 attack on two boys aged nine and 11 in Edlington, near Doncaster.
The brothers have admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent. This is quite an unpleasant speech Liam Byrne, Labour minister
While stressing that the case is not typical, Mr Cameron is expected to cite it as a shocking example of what he calls Britain's broken society, one of the key themes of the party's campaign but a diagnosis rejected by the government. The Tory leader said he would not flinch from raising the case as he believed it was symptomatic of levels of social breakdown in Britain.
David Cameron always talks Britain down but he is wrong to suggest this case is typical of the British people Labour spokesman "I think when things like this happen it is right to stand back, reflect and ask ourselves some deep questions about what is going wrong in our society," he told an audience at a community centre in Gillingham.
No new policies will be announced in his speech, but Mr Cameron will argue that Britain needs a social recovery, one in which the state plays a smaller role. Mr Cameron denied that his frequent references to a "broken Britain" was an over-statement and "terrible crimes" such as those which had happened in Doncaster could not be ignored.
Treasury minister Liam Byrne said people were entitled to be "white with rage" over what happened in Doncaster but he added: "When people read what Mr Cameron is saying today, they will see this is quite an unpleasant speech. "I don't think it is right every time one of these events takes place to say that it is just some isolated incident of evil that we should look away from and forget about."
"What Mr Cameron appears to be trying to do is seizing on one absolutely horrific crime and almost tarring the people of Doncaster, if not the people of Britain, with the same kind of standards and I think that people will recoil from that." "Are we going to do that every time there is a Jamie Bulger or a Baby Peter or a Ben Kinsella or a Gary Newlove or what has happened in Doncaster? We shouldn't. We should ask about what has gone wrong with our society and what we are going to do about it."
And he hit back at critics who have accused him of exploiting the Doncaster case for political ends, saying: "I think it is right to raise it in a responsible way and it is right to have this debate about how we can strengthen our society."
'Tarring people'
Mr Cameron has accused Prime Minister Gordon Brown of a "cover-up" for refusing to publish the full text of a serious case review into the Doncaster attack, rather than the executive summary.Mr Cameron has accused Prime Minister Gordon Brown of a "cover-up" for refusing to publish the full text of a serious case review into the Doncaster attack, rather than the executive summary.
He said the publication of summaries of past serious case reviews had not led to action on the ground.He said the publication of summaries of past serious case reviews had not led to action on the ground.
Mr Cameron said: "In the case of Baby Peter (in Haringey), the summary was found to be completely inadequate; it was not worth the paper it was written on."
Seven children known to Doncaster Council have died in the borough since 2004, prompting serious case reviews, Ofsted inspections and a government investigation.Seven children known to Doncaster Council have died in the borough since 2004, prompting serious case reviews, Ofsted inspections and a government investigation.
'Uniquely terrible' Treasury minister Liam Byrne said people were entitled to be "white with rage" over what happened in Doncaster but he added: "When people read what Mr Cameron is saying today, they will see this is quite an unpleasant speech.
But Mr Brown insisted lessons would be learned from the summary of the report into the Edlington attack. "What Mr Cameron appears to be trying to do is seizing on one absolutely horrific crime and almost tarring the people of Doncaster, if not the people of Britain, with the same kind of standards and I think that people will recoil from that."
Everyone was agreed about the "seriousness of this case", Gordon Brown told MPs at prime minister's questions. Gordon Brown has insisted lessons would be learned from the summary of the report into the Edlington attack.
Commenting on Mr Cameron's latest speech, a Labour spokesman said: "What happened in Doncaster was uniquely terrible and extremely rare.
"David Cameron always talks Britain down but he is wrong to suggest this case is typical of the British people.
Labour said the NSPCC had backed the decision not to publish the full serious case, saying "sensitive information must be kept confidential to protect vulnerable children".Labour said the NSPCC had backed the decision not to publish the full serious case, saying "sensitive information must be kept confidential to protect vulnerable children".
Responding to claims that the report's executive summary did not accurately reflect its contents, Liam Byrne said that if that was the case the summary should be rewritten.Responding to claims that the report's executive summary did not accurately reflect its contents, Liam Byrne said that if that was the case the summary should be rewritten.