David Cameron will today reveal his hope that people remember his 10 years in power as the “time when the tide turned”.
The Tory prime minister, who has promised to serve a full second term, will tell activists he believes the Conservatives can make the 2010s a “turnaround decade”.
In his speech on the final day of his party’s conference in Manchester, he is expected to say: “Over the next five years, we will show that the deep problems in our society – they are not inevitable.
“We’ve proved it in schools across our country that the poorest children don’t have to get the worst results, they can get the best.
“I believe that we can make this era – these 2010s – a defining decade for our country.
“The turnaround decade, one which people will look back on and say ‘that’s the time when the tide turned, when people no longer felt the current going against them, but working with them’.”
Yesterday, Mr Cameron insisted he would see out another five years in Downing Street following claims he would hand over the reins to his successor in 2019.
His decision to reveal before the general election that he would not fight a third term has prompted frenzied speculation about the potential candidates for the top job.
Among them is Home Secretary Theresa May, who provoked a storm of controversy with her conference speech outlining an overhaul of the asylum system.
Reacting to it, Mr Cameron insisted she was right to claim it was impossible to have a cohesive society if immigration was too high.
He said: “That’s the whole point.
“A strong and cohesive society needs immigration to be properly under control and our view at the moment is that it is too high.”
Meanwhile, the prime minister has also confirmed Boris Johnson will be given a Cabinet position once he stands down as Mayor of London.