LABOUR has launched its election manifesto for the North-East which aims to create greater investment in order to boost prosperity for residents and businesses alike.

The Our North-East: Our Vision for the Future of the North-East of England was unveiled today (Thursday, February 26) when the area's Labour MPs and parliamentary candidates set out their plan to create greater affluence

The manifesto says the North-East is suffering under the Conservative Government and that the momentum to move the North-East forward stalled when Labour lost power in 2010 since when hundreds of millions of pounds have been moved away from the region to other parts of the country.

Helen Goodman, the Labour MP for Bishop Auckland, said: “We want to see our region thrive again and we believe that our plan covering everything from fair funding and a National Investment Bank to improved rail, road and airport infrastructure and many more decisions taken in the North-East, will do that.

“We don’t however underestimate the size of the challenge and believe only with national and local politicians, business and industry, colleges and universities and others working together, can we succeed in exploiting the talents of our people and provide them and their families with the future that they are entitled to.”

Labour wants a Regional Minister for the North-East to oversee work between agencies in the region and to represent the area at a national level.

A fairer distribution of funds is being called for to help the region make up ground lost on areas such as the South-East.

The manifesto says the North-East’s economy has shrunk by ten per cent in recent years due to cuts.

It proposes to tackle the lack of finance for North-East business by creating a British Investment Bank with resources of up to £1bn which can support a regional banking network.

North-East unemployment, Labour says, was at 9.1 per cent as of December 2014, the highest rate in the UK.

The Manifesto says it aims to entice North-East graduates to remain in the region and it will seek the introduction of the living wage.

A final key point in the election pledge states that the Conservatives spend £1 per head in the North-East on transport compared with £520 in London.

This lack of investment in transport, Labour says, is a key factor holding back the region’s economy.