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Etobicoke-Lakeshore MPP Michael Ignatieff officially announced his candidacy for the Liberal leadership Thursday morning, vowing to "out-think" the Conservative government with the proclamation "I'm in!"

At a press conference in Ottawa, the 61-year-old writer and academic who lost the 2006 leadership battle to Stephane Dion, said he will not be running against any of his "fine fellow Liberals" in this race, but against Stephen Harper and the Conservative government.

"They failed to prepare our country for tough times; they failed to confront the rising crisis in the industrial sector; they've failed to address Canada's growing problem of productivity; they've failed to tell Canadians the truth," he said in his speech.

"Leadership for me is about telling a true story that helps Canadians make sense of their world, a story that is true, and so helps us to act together with courage and determination," he added. "What we understand together, we can master together."

As in the 2006 leadership race, Ignatieff will once again square off against longtime friend and rival, Bob Rae, Toronto Centre MP. The two are touted as the ones to beat at the Liberal leadership convention in Vancouver in early May.

If elected, Ignatieff has pledged to convene a policy conference within 100 days of the convention and to initiate renewal at the grassroots.

He said, as a Liberal, it is his job in the opposition to out-think the Conservative government.

"The key point is this: at precisely the moment when the global economic system is turning to governments around the world to become a guarantor of last resort, Canada is ruled by a party that actually still believes that government is the problem, not the solution.

"We Liberals believe government can be part of the solution."