Prime Minister David Cameron has promised "an all-out assault on poverty" in his address to the Conservative Party Conference, prompting some to question whether he had been replaced by a "left-wing lookalike".
His vision of "compassionate conservatism" is described as a "bold raid on Labour territory", by The Times. From the issues of children in care and social mobility to prison reform and racial equality, there was not much in his speech that a moderate Labour leader could not have delivered, says the newspaper.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Was that David Cameron, or some left-wing lookalike?" asks Donald Macintyre in his political sketch for The Independent.
"He has set himself, not least on equality, the highest of bars by which to be judged in five years' time," says Macintyre. "Yet if political messages mean anything, some in mainstream Labour will be worried."
The Daily Telegraph rejects the idea that it was a "pseudo-Left speech", insisting it was one "rooted in a very Conservative idea that equality of opportunity is meaningless if people are denied it because of their background".
The newspaper holds up the PM as a "conquering hero" who is "determined to conduct a crusade of social reform to eradicate the privation that Labour always promises to end but never has".
However, a report by the Resolution Foundation appears to contradict the prime minister's vow to devote the remaining five years of his premiership to social reform and real equality, says The Guardian.
The findings suggest that the government's planned welfare cuts will lead to an increase of 200,000 working households living in poverty by 2020.
"Wherever he imagines the common ground or centre ground to be, he has no compass nor any intention of going there," says the newspaper's Polly Toynbee.
"The disconnect, the cognitive dissonance, between the words in his speech and his actions past and planned made for a dizzying acrobatic performance.
"Talk left, walk right. Listen to what he says, don't look down at what he does."
-
Who will win the battle for the soul of the Green Party?An ideological divide is taking root among the environmentalists
-
Are we facing a summer of riots?Today's Big Question Anti-immigrant unrest in Essex has sparked fears of a summer of disorder
-
Who stands to gain – and lose – from 16-year-old voters?Today's Big Question Many assume Labour will benefit but move could 'backfire' if Greens, a new hard-left party or Reform continue to pick up momentum
-
What difference will the 'historic' UK-Germany treaty make?Today's Big Question Europe's two biggest economies sign first treaty since WWII, underscoring 'triangle alliance' with France amid growing Russian threat and US distance
-
Mortgage reform: is Rachel Reeves betting the house on City rules shake-up?Today's Big Question Reforms could create up to 36,000 additional mortgages next year
-
Corbynism returns: a new party on the LeftTalking Point Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana's breakaway progressive party has already got off to a shaky start
-
How will Labour pay for welfare U-turn?Today's Big Question A dramatic concession to Labour rebels has left the government facing more fiscal dilemmas
-
Backbench rebellions and broken promises: is it getting harder to govern?Today's Big Question Backbench rebellions and broken promises: is it getting harder to govern?
