Michael Howard has returned to his Welsh roots for his first major tour since taking the Tory crown.

The Conservative leader began a four-day national tour on Friday in Cardiff.

His first major national initiative since becoming leader of the opposition will also include Manchester, Scotland and Birmingham.

He visited the national assembly and met Conservative leader, Nick Bourne.

On Saturday he travels to Llanelli where he will visit a college and the café where his mother's dress shop was once located.

Howard was enthusiastic about returning to his childhood home.

"It's fantastic - but no coincidence - that my first visit outside London since becoming Conservative Party Leader is to Wales," he said.

"My childhood in Llanelli did so much to shape the rest of my life. I am thrilled to be going back to the community where I grew up and to visit my school. I'm particularly looking forward to meeting again some of the people who helped me on the road to where I am today."

Born as Michael Hecht, the Kent MP's parents were Lithuanian refugees.

Howard went to the local grammar school before going to Cambridge to study law.

Following in the footsteps of John Major, Howard appears set to turn his ordinary upbringing to his political advantage.

Speaking in the Commons this week the Tory leader said the prime minister was in no position to lecture him on access to higher education.

"This grammar school boy is not going to take any lessons from this public schoolboy [Blair] on the importance of children from less privileged backgrounds gaining access to university," said the Conservative leader.

The Welsh visit is a symbolic reminder of the scale of the challenge facing the new Tory leader.

Whilst the party has clawed back seats in constituencies for the Welsh assembly, there are still no Tory MPs from Wales.

To succeed Howard will have to turn around decades of Tory decline in seats such as Monmouth and Cardiff North.