Tory plans have already been trialled in various parts of the country. Not a lot of people know that

It was among the ideas David Cameron raised when he put himself forward as prospective Tory leader in 2005 and now, more than four years later, his determination to push ahead with a national citizen service became the centrepiece of his first major press conference of the election campaign.

Under a Tory government, cash would be diverted from Labour's "failing" community cohesion schemes to pay for youngsters to take part in civilian "national service", Cameron said today, as he shifted the focus from his plans to partially scrap the proposed rise in national insurance to his "big society" agenda.

The Tory leader said the plans for national citizen service had already been trialled in pilot programmes run by charities and social enterprises in London, Wales and north-west England, which allows the Tories the rare opportunity of presenting a Conservative policy already being put into practice.

Cameron said the schemes brought 16-year-olds from a mix of backgrounds together to learn what being socially responsible means, "to help a generation of young people appreciate what they can achieve for themselves, and by themselves," he said this morning.

Sixteen-year-olds would be offered two months of summer activities such as looking after the elderly as a cure for the "national scandal of all this wasted promise".

For good measure, Cameron quoted none other than Mahatma Gandhi, who reportedly said: "The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."

The idea of national service – albeit in a very different, pacifist guise from the kind men had to do until 1963 under conscription – will no doubt be music to traditional Tory ears, but also to many – in the elderly population at least – who will swear to the sense of discipline and duty that such schemes instil.

If quoting Gandhi wasn't enough, Cameron had Sir Michael Caine on hand to promote his pioneering scheme. Caine said he did national service in his day "and it wasn't very good" (not a lot of people admit to that).

Cameron's idea will be better, he reckons.

National service means different things to different countries in Europe. The European commission's press office doesn't have a collective overview, so refers me back to a handy page on Wikipedia that outlines the vagaries of national policy on citizenship duties on this front. Among the countries listed as having civilian service options are Denmark, Austria, Sweden and Germany.

There was an outcry a few years ago when plans were unveiled to phase out Germany's mandatory national service, because hospitals and old people's homes relied on the cheap labour of conscientious objectors. The scheme is still in place, suggesting those who kicked up a fuss got their way. Young Germans could do 10 months of "alternative civilian service" if they did not want to serve in the armed forces. It's now gone down to nine months – the same as military service, though there are plans to shorten the stint in the armed forces to six months from next year.

I understand Labour has floated the idea of raising the concept of a new European-wide "peace corp" to tap into young people's enthusiasm for volunteering during their gap year. It was suggested by David Miliband, the foreign secretary, in a recent cabinet meeting – though my source told me it didn't get much support from cabinet colleagues.

So, is Cameron onto a good thing here? Has Labour missed a trick?