David Cameron today vowed to transform the lives of 120,000 problem families he described as the "victims of state failure".
The Prime Minister said a national network of "trouble-shooters" would be put in place to work one-on-one with families who were being "pulled and prodded and poked a dozen times a week by government".
He accused Labour of presiding over a regime of "compassionate cruelty", trapping families on welfare and baffling them with red tape.
Downing Street claims dealing with the 120,000 families costs the taxpayer an estimated £9 billion a year. Turning their lives around was made a priority in the wake of the summer riots.
At a speech in Birmingham Mr Cameron said the violence and looting was a "wake-up call" which underlined the need to deal with social problems.
And he pledged £448 million to help transform the lives of "neighbours from hell".
Shadow Home Office minister Gloria de Piero warned of a "gap between the rhetoric and the reality" in the light of funding cuts.
She said: "This is important work but if David Cameron demands results from local authorities, whilst pulling the carpet from beneath them while reforms are being shelved, this could be a wasted opportunity to properly expand Labour's family intervention policies."
