David Cameron has launched the Conservative local election campaign in Derbyshire, claiming the Tories are "the party that cares about the strivers, the battlers, the family-raisers, the community-builders."

The prime minister warned anyone in the voting booth whose "pencil should hover over Labour’s box" that the party had been an "utter disaster" for Britain.

In a speech which was extremely light on policy detail but heavy on Labour-bashing rhetoric, Cameron claimed the coalition was embarked on a radical programme of change, highlighting the role Michael Gove was playing at the Department for Education in setting up free schools and academies.

"Over 1,700 schools in England now enjoy the freedom that comes from Academy status - against just 203 created by Labour," the PM claimed.

But speaking earlier to the Daily Politics on BBC Two, Conservative party chairwoman Sayeeda Warsi, admitted the Tories would hav a "difficult night" on May the 3rd in the council elections. She refused to speculate on how many wards the party would lose, but acknowledged that the Tories had last contested the wards up for election on May 3rd in 2008 - when the party's popularity was at a high watermark.

Some analysts believe the Tories will lose around 400 wards on election night, mostly to Labour.

The Tory launch came on the same day as a YouGov poll which put Labour six points ahead of them in national polls.

The Tories and Labour will spend the next couple of weeks arguing about which party delivers the lowest council tax. David Cameron claimed on Tuesday that the lowest average council tax levels on a Band D property were to be found in Tory-held councils areas.

But Labour claims that households in authorities controlled by them pay on average £220 less per year than those living in Tory areas and £101 less than those in Lib Dem areas.