Tories 'should focus on social problems'

Abused pets get more help than battered women in London, senior Tory Liam Fox charged today as he mapped out his agenda for the party leadership.

Speaking exclusively to the Evening Standard, he condemned the shortage of refuges for women and said tackling social problems should be the Conservatives' new priority.

"There are more places of refuge for pets in London than there are for vulnerable women," he said.

"What does that tell you about the values that we place on human life in our capital? If we are serious about cutting crime, here is a golden opportunity to cut the most serious crime rate of all by tackling the causes of it." The 43-year-old shadow foreign secretary and former cochairman put forward an agenda in which the Conservatives would treat "a broken society" with the same zeal they had used to reverse economic decline in the Eighties.

"London has more murders than anywhere else in the country, yet one in four of the victims are women murdered by their own partners," he said, citing figures-given to him during a visit to a London refuge for victims of forced marriages. "Across the country, the proportion is even higher - 40 per cent of murder victims. Most middle-class people think 'this could never happen to people like me', yet it happens in all walks of life."

In a startling indication that he has moved on from his Thatcherite roots, Dr Fox added: "If we want to live in a civilised

society, it is time to place more value on crimes against people rather than crimes against property."

The Tories needed to attack new problems to show they were relevant, he said. "Thirty years ago, we had a broken economy which our party put right. Now we have a broken society and the issues that raises are more uncomfortable and more complex.

" It's uncomfortable dealing with issues such as mental illness or domestic violence, yet until we do so as a country we will not tackle violence. What I'm saying is we have to deal with subjects that are outside the comfort zone. That is, I believe, what the Conservative Party exists for."

Dr Fox, a former GP, has campaigned on mental health issues for several years, with little media coverage. He has been better known for his fiery comments on issues such as Europe, on which he is a sceptic. He is the first Right-winger to challenge front-runner David Davis for the Tory crown.

His comments suggest he is calculating support from the groups of modernisers and One Nation Conservatives. Dr Fox has yet to formally announce he is standing but his bandwagon is up and running, with shadow Commons leader Chris Grayling as campaign manager. Two newly elected London MPs are also on board - Putney's telegenic Justine Greening and Greg Hands, MP for Hammersmith and Fulham - signalling a push to attract younger members.

Dr Fox's hopes were boosted last week when he announced his engagement to fellow doctor Jesme Baird, 37, a cancer specialist. The couple plan to live in his north Somerset constituency after their December wedding.