The Conservatives are "plain wrong" to suggest that Britain is a broken society with "anarchy" on the streets, Jacqui Smith has said.

Speaking at the Labour conference in Bournemouth, the home secretary issued a strongly worded attack on the Tory summer offensive on law and order issues.

David Cameron has made addressing Britain's social ills a key plank of his policy agenda.

And over recent months a series of knife and gun crimes prompted the party to headline one of his speeches as being about "anarchy in the UK".

But Smith insisted that the description failed to reflect reality.

"Delivering security is not a challenge that is confined to countering terrorism," she said.

"It also means protecting our identity, securing our borders, and ensuring that people can feel safe in their homes and their neighbourhoods as well, so that they and their families can get on with their lives.

"And we are making progress: Violent crime at its lowest for a decade. Record numbers of police, working with thousands of community support officers. The chances of being a victim of crime at their lowest for 25 years.

"Of course, tragic events rightly make us question if we're doing all we can.

"But to suggest - as David Cameron and David Davis have - that Britain is a broken society, that there is anarchy on our streets, is just plain wrong."

Shadow home secretary David Davis said Smith was "in denial about the problems we face"

"No-one believes violent crime is down and her own department says it has doubled," he added.

"Now she wants more mediation with gangs, when the public want tough punishments meted out.

"She says they've doubled drug rehab, but eight in 10 on their top program fail.

"The government won't fix any of these problems, until they wake up to them."