AN influential American right wing think-tank has been given advice on ‘caring conservatism’ by Iain Duncan Smith.

The Chingford MP met with members of the Heritage Foundation to offer advise on how the Republican Party can rebrand itself in the wake of last year’s poor election performance.

During an address in Washington, Mr Duncan Smith drew parallels between the Republican current predicament and the situation the Conservative party found itself in when the British electorate overwhemingly backed Tony Blair’s New Labour vision in 1997.

During the speech, entitled "Conservatism and Society", he said both parties suffered from “reputations for sleaze, incompetence and narrowness of interest”.

Mr Duncan Smith chairs the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a think tank which informs Tory policy on ways to tackle inequality and deprivation - a traditionally strong area for Labour.

He said Republicans must embrace the need for change, while ensuring strategy is “consistent with the character of conservatism”.

But he warned the party may have to go through a long painful process before it is able to fully recover.

The MP also compared President Barack Obama with Tony Blair as both men offered “grand promises” and enjoyed widespread media approval.

He emphasised the importance of a strong leader and the need to alter perception as well as policy.

Speaking to the Guardian after the visit, Mr Duncan Smith said "George W Bush started implementing a lot of the work we are looking into but then when the twin towers were hit on September 11 he obviously became increasingly involved in world events and was unable to carry the work through.”

"President Bush will not be judged as harshly by the history books as he is currently been judged by the critics."

"I know plenty of Republicans and indeed Democrats are interested in what we are saying and what the CSJ has done. Our work is about improving the quality of life and helping mend broken lives across Britain."