A future Labour Government would use greater devolution of power to drive national economic recovery, party leader Ed Miliband has confirmed.

Speaking in Birmingham, Miliband said Labour planned to grant town halls resources and power from Whitehall ‘the like of which we have not seen in living memory’ in a bid to support job creation and tackle the ‘cost of living crisis’.

The Labour leader revealed he would write to every council leader, Local Enterprise Partnership and university asking them to demonstrate ‘real economic leadership’.

If Labour came to power in the next General Election, regions that bring forward local economic strategies by the first year of the next Parliament could receive significant power and access to resources.

‘The country that once built its prosperity on the great towns and cities, like Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool, Leeds, Manchester, Glasgow and Cardiff, has become a country which doesn’t do enough to build prosperity in England outside one great capital city: London,’ Miliband said.

‘We need a prosperous London but we need to build prosperity outside it too.’

‘Devolving power from Whitehall to our towns and cities is essential to generate the new jobs we need. We propose a new bargain: Cities and towns that come together with local businesses will be given historic new powers over transport, housing, skills and economic development.

‘We are determined to make our great cities and towns the powerhouses for the creation of good jobs.

‘And our towns and cities will have greater control over the funding of skills, including with local businesses having a direct say in the funding of apprenticeships for the first time.’