ED MILIBAND will today place English devolution at the heart of his plan for government with proposals to decentralise power and money away from London to the regions while more powers are transferred to Scotland.
The Labour leader's blueprint will mean:
l An English Devolution Act to "reverse a century of centralisation".
l £30bn of funds for the English regions during the five-year life of the next Parliament.
l More power to city and county regions over their public transport networks, similar to those operating in London on routes and fares.
l A new English Regional Cabinet Committee chaired by the Prime Minister and whose membership would not only include secretaries of state but also leaders from major cities and regions.
Speaking in Manchester today, where Mr Miliband will chair a preparatory meeting of the Shadow English Regional Cabinet Committee, the party leader is expected to say: "Labour has a radical plan for spreading power and prosperity across England's city and county regions so that the recovery reaches your town square - not just the Square Mile of the City of London.
"Labour will legislate so that city and county regions can set fares, decide routes, and integrate bus services with trams, trains and the wider public transport network."
The first full meeting of the Shadow Cabinet Committee will be held in January when Ed Balls, the Shadow Chancellor, will report on how devolution for England will be mainstreamed into the first Spending Review of a Labour Government.
Referring to the proposal to introduce an England Act, Mr Miliband will say: "Our plan will enable every region that comes together as combined authorities to have extra powers and move to electing a leader if they wish. It will devolve funding equivalent to £30bn over five years in areas like transport and housing infrastructure, business support, skills, and employment.
"And it will reverse a century of centralisation so that every region of England can benefit from the local planning and support the last Labour government delivered for Scotland and Wales."
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