To what extent are the current Conservative and Labour party similar and different?

In many ways, the Conservative party and Labour party are very different. The Conservative MPs continue to hold right wing or Thatcherite views, where they believe in free market and self interest, where people earn for themselves. Whereas the Labour party are more left wing, with Old Labour ideas returning, where people look out for one another. 

The Conservative party introduced further modernization, for example, Cameron and Osborne believe that a smaller state is ideologically desirable. The key pledges the Conservatives introduced in 2015 include:

• To eliminate the deficit and achieve a budget surplus by 2018-19. 
• Cut welfare spending by £12 billion.
• Cut the household benefit cap from £26,000 to £23,000 year.
• Increase NHS spending in England, by at least £8 billion. 
• Raise the income tax personal allowance to £12,500.
• Extend the 'right to buy' scheme.
• Scrap the Human Rights Act, replacing it with a 'British bill of rights.' 
• Prevent EU migrants from claiming certain benefits and social housing for 4 years. 
• Hold an 'in/out' referendum on the UK's EU membership by the end of 2017. 

The Labour party, under Ed Miliband's leadership, their key pledges for  the May 2015 general election are:

• Cut the deficit every year in order to balance the books. 
• No additional borrowing for new spending. 
• Provide an extra £2.5 billion for the NHS, paid by a 'mansion tax.'
• Reintroduce the 50% top rate of income tax for those earning over £150,000.
• Raise the minimum wage to at least £8 an hour by 2019.
• Abolish the 'bedroom tax.'
• Introduce a 2 year wait before EU migrants can claim out of work benefits. 
• No transfer of powers from the UK, to the EU without an 'in/out' referendum. 
• Freeze energy bills until 2017. 

Despite their differences, the Conservative and Labour party are similar, especially through their key pledges of the 2015 general election as although they aren't completely the same, both parties pledged to increase the NHS spending by £8 billion (Tories) or £2.5 billion (Labour). The two parties have also pledged, in their different ways, to prevent EU migrants from claiming benefits, and the 'in/out' referendum on the UK's EU membership has been mentioned by the Conservatives and Labour. 

However, despite these similarities, the Conservatives and Labour remain on opposite ends of the political spectrum, meaning their ideologies clash with one another, and the two parties will always have to compete for the public's vote.