Cameron pledges to close North/South divide

The Prime Minister will promise to make sure the North grows at least as fast as the rest of the country across the next Parliament.

He will say a central goal of a future Conservative Government will be to build a “truly national recovery”.

To achieve this, he will set out a four-point plan:

- Investment in infrastructure

- Backing the science and technology strengths of the north

- Improving skills

- Giving more economic power to local communities

He will say: “My message to everyone in the north is simple: the Conservative Party is the party for you. Forget about Labour, they’ve let you down before and they’ll let you down again.

"This time next week, Ed Miliband could be propped up the SNP, funneling cash north of the border. The only way to stop it, the only way to secure the future of the north, is by voting Conservative.

“We have the ideas, the passion, the desire and yes the track record to create something special here. What I’m pledging to here is nothing less than the most important commitment to the north for decades: we’re going to close the north-south growth gap.

“We’re going to build a Northern Powerhouse, with more jobs and new investment coming to the north.

“The next five years will see a northern surge – and, economically, it will be the most exciting time to be here since the industrial revolution.

“But it all depends on having a Conservative government. If the Scottish Nationalists are in charge, propping up a weak Ed Miliband, the north won’t get a look in. Transport projects in the north will get cancelled. Investment in science and industry in the north won’t happen.”

The Tories say this commitment builds on recent progress, with the north growing faster than the south in the most recent year, with the North-West the fastest growing part of the country. Yorkshire had the largest reduction in unemployment rate in the whole country over the last year, and the North-East had the fastest growth in earnings in England.