Davis promises to 'hug a hoodie harder'

David Davis today broke the 'softly softly' mood of the Conservative party conference by promising tough action on criminals, immigration and terrorism.

In tune with David Cameron's new approach, many of this year's debates in Bournemouth are on 'soft' issues such as the environment and, this morning, the marketisation of childhood.

But the shadow home secretary used his speech this lunchtime to promise a tough agenda on law and order, saying he backed the Tory leader's call to "hug a hoodie" – but "might just hug a little harder and longer".

He attacked proposals being considered by the government to give muggers and robbers an on-the-spot fine rather than a jail sentence, saying that under the Tories, these people would be "treated like the criminals they are".

And Mr Davis lambasted the government for "ignoring" the problems of immigration, saying they had let in hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants, and allowed hundreds of "dangerous foreign criminals" to roam free.

"The failure to control our borders hasn't just led to more crime and less secure streets – it's also let down a lot of honest hard-working immigrants who came to this country with something to contribute," he said.

"Unlike the Labour government we're not afraid to talk honestly about immigration…immigration can be of enormous benefit to Britain, economically and culturally. But that can only happen if it is properly managed and controlled."

On terrorism, Mr Davis also laid into ministers for failing to enforce their own laws to provide security but at the same time damaging civil liberties with measures such as detention without trial.

"Labour doesn't understand a simply obvious truth – you can't defend our liberties by sacrificing our liberties," he said.

His comments come after Shami Chakrabarti, director of human rights group Liberty, argued against the "pit bull posturing of home secretaries who would be king".

Speaking to the Conservative party conference, she made what appeared to be an attack on home secretary John Reid, criticising people who would sacrifice civil liberties "on the altar of high ambition".

However, Mr Reid hit back warning the Tories "lack the guts" required when it comes to giving the police and security services the powers they needed to tackle terrorism.

"The challenge on countering terrorism for the Conservative party is leadership. They voted against control orders, glorification and 90-day detention powers," he said.

"David Cameron's lack of leadership on these most serious of issues is evident in his voting record."