Both Labour and the Conservatives chose to focus on equality, social justice and crime today – key issues for many voters.
We followed David Cameron as he made a speech to the right-leaning Centre For Social Justice, set up by the former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith.
The former EastEnders actor Brook Kinsella, whose 16-year-old brother, Ben, was murdered in 2008, was also on the panel. She has been given an advisory role by the Tories but says she is not a party political figure.
Duncan Smith tells us he is pleased with the reception his ideas are getting at Conservative HQ, but adds that there is still plenty of work to do.
Meanwhile, some of today's audience members, including charity workers, volunteers and church officials, remain to be convinced that they can effectively do the work of the state.
And on the thorny issue of crime statistics (two conflicting sets were publicised today), Alan Travis gives us a reality check on who to believe.
Elsewhere, at a lively Labour press conference, Peter Mandelson and Ed Balls criticised the media for focusing too little on the 'big isssues'.
And in Brighton, the Green party's top target seat, Jon Dennis has been assessing the mood.
