The British Prime Minister, Mr Blair, yesterday outlined Labour's policy objectives if it wins the next election, promising to "break down the barriers that hold people back" and encourage social mobility.
In a speech at a school in Enfield, north London, Mr Blair set out his "route-map" for a second term in government emphasising Labour's commitment to revitalise and reform education and the criminal justice system over the next 10 years.
A government of "competence and modernity" which had delivered on pledges to create a stable economy, secure devolution, the minimum wage and improve educational standards was the message from Mr Blair. But also recognition that Labour must follow through on its pledge of a radical government agenda if it is to realise its 10-year reform programme.
Mr Blair told a selection of pupils from schools across north London that his party was firmly rooted in the centre-ground, while its opponents had drifted "sharply rightwards".
He said the mission of any second term must be "to break down the barriers that hold people back, to create real upward mobility, a society that is open and genuinely based on merit and the equal worth of all".
Mr Blair announced that the government had agreed an £18 million deal over three years with universities, including Oxford and Cambridge, to increase by 50,000 by 2010 the number of students under 30 years of age recruited from poor backgrounds.
The deal comes after the political row over Oxford University's decision not to offer a place to the talented comprehensive student, Ms Laura Spence, and Mr Blair pledged Labour would address the imbalance between advantaged and disadvantaged students gaining access to higher education.
Three out of four children whose parents have professional careers currently move into higher education compared with only one in six whose parents have manual jobs. There was no question of quotas or of lowering standards, Mr Blair said. "It is a strictly meritocratic programme."
The criminal justice system, which was often viewed as "ineffective" and out of date by the public, would also see "root and branch" reform.
The Conservative leader, Mr William Hague, was also in election mode when he pledged that a Tory tax system would support marriage. In a speech at the launch of Marriage Week at the Commonwealth Club in London, Mr Hague said politicians often avoided promoting the family because they feared the reaction when colleagues' marriages or relationships went wrong. "But such cowardice is irresponsible," he said. "I believe in marriage not because I want to impose a lifestyle on people but because I want to help the majority fulfil their aspiration to marry and stay married."