LABOUR leader Ed Miliband, above, accused Prime Minister David Cameron of resorting to ‘knee-jerk’ responses yesterday.

He again called for the Government to launch a full-scale inquiry into last week’s riots. But Oxfordshire’s Conservative MPs welcomed the Prime Minister’s pledge to tackle British society’s “slow moral collapse”.

Mr Miliband said: “Day by day the Prime Minister has revealed himself to be reaching for shallow and superficial answers, not the lasting solutions the country needs, based on the wisdom and insights of our communities.

“Of course, there is a demand for quick action, but a new policy a day, knee-jerk gimmicks not thought through – they will not solve the problem.”

He blamed “greed, selfishness and immorality” for the riots: “It can only be solved by addressing the issues right across our society, from bonuses to benefits.”

He said called for Mr Cameron to launch an official inquiry into the violence.

Nicola Blackwood, MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, said: “The recent disturbances highlighted the significant problems we face.

“The Prime Minister is absolutely right that we must support parents and improve education if we are to create a stronger and more responsible society, and I welcome any efforts which help achieve that end.”

John Howell, MP for Henley, said: “The idea that society is broken and needed to be on the agenda to fix it was very much the platform we all stood on before the last election.”

He added: “I think it is undoubtedly true that there has been a ‘slow moral collapse’ in society.”

Andrew Smith, Labour MP for Oxford East, said: “There is no quick solution to these problems but I think it right to focus on things like parental responsibility and discipline in schools.

“There has got to be a culture of discipline and people believing in right and wrong.”