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David Cameron has broken his truce with Gordon Brown over the financial crisis and launched a stinging attack on the PM's handling of the economy.

He said Mr Brown's strategy had "fundamentally failed" and accused him of hiding from past policy failures.

The Tory leader said he still supported the PM's bank rescue plan but said Mr Brown's mistakes had led to a downturn.

Mr Brown brushed off the comments saying his undivided attention was on taking Britain through difficult times.

He said the current crisis had "been created as a result of a global problem that started in America".

And he added: "I think the whole country wants everybody who can to work together through these difficult challenges. "

'Irresponsible'

The prime minister has closed the gap on the Conservatives in the opinion polls since since the global financial system went into meltdown, with Mr Cameron holding off on direct attacks to avoid accusations of playing politics.

But the gloves came off earlier, in a speech in the City of London, with the Tory leader attacking Mr Brown's "irresponsible" economic policies which he said had created an unsustainable boom.

"We need change to mend our broken economy. This lot cannot do it - not least because they cannot own up to any mistakes," said the Tory leader.

Mr Cameron said decisions made by Mr Brown when he was chancellor had led to a period of "irresponsible capitalism" and only the Conservatives had a plan to bring it back under control.

The complete and utter failure of their economic record has never been more clear to see

David Cameron

He said he would "never pull my punches in explaining how this government has brought Britain down" and accused Mr Brown of a "complete and utter failure" in economic policy.

He argued that New Labour had embraced free market economics "without question" without "properly understanding how it worked".

And he said Mr Brown had "spent and borrowed without restraint" and ignored warnings about the consequences.

The failure to control public and private spending over the past decade, leading to unsustainable debt levels, was an act of "intentional" negligence on the part of the government.