Devolving power to 26 of Britain's smaller cities could transform them into economic powerhouses and save the government £2.5bn a year, a think tank claims.
ResPublica says the cities' economic potential means they deserve extra powers equivalent to those currently devolved to larger city-regions.
The report, Power, people and places: A Manifesto for devolution to Britain’s Key Cities, says this would include the freedom to set and retain local levies such as council tax and business rates and would also allow them to give tax discounts for tourism.
Cities including Peterborough, Sunderland, Derby, Coventry, Bournemouth, Hull and Portsmouth could reduce their combined contribution to the Government’s borrowing requirement by up to a half and create jobs as specialist centres of industry and technology.
Phillip Blond, director of ResPublica and the report's author, said: 'Our report shows that if key cities get devolved powers the whole country will gain as the revenue generated for the Treasury will be staggering.'