Cameron urges faith in capitalism

Mr Cameron criticised Labour for using too many top-down targets

Conservative leader David Cameron has said people's "faith in capitalism and free enterprise" must be restored despite the global downturn.

The foundations of the economy have been "shaken", creating a need for more emphasis on re-training amid "mass unemployment", he added.

Mr Cameron promised his party would restore Job Clubs and encourage family-friendly working.

The era of "big bureaucracy" must end, he told an audience in Birmingham.

'Top-down targets'

Speaking at the Social Enterprise Coalition conference in Birmingham, Mr Cameron accused the government of stifling the training system based on out-of-date assumptions of a growing economy in which only a hardcore of unskilled people could not find work.

He called for greater flexibility for people looking for new skills and to attract new providers into the system to deliver training courses.

Mr Cameron confirmed Tory plans to abolish the Learning and Skills Council, create a