Chancellor to promise infrastructure cash and greater regional devolution as he seeks to woo voters outside of Tory heartlands

George Osborne will continue his attempted charm offensive aimed at the north of England by promising money for infrastructure and greater civic powers for cities including Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield.

In a speech in Manchester, the chancellor will say plans to improve the economy of the north of England will be a "centrepiece" of his pre-budget announcements this autumn.

His pledges are likely to be interpreted as part of a Conservative effort to woo voters outside of the party's traditional southern heartlands. In June, the chancellor launched the first step of this effort by suggesting another high-speed rail line should be built between Manchester and Leeds.

The north of England is at the centre of a growing political battle for votes. Around the same time that Osborne promised to create a "northern powerhouse", Labour leader Ed Miliband said he would create "regional economic powerhouses" and Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg launched a new project called Northern Futures.

Osborne has so far resisted implementing all the recommendations of Tory peer Lord Heseltine, who has called for a serious amount of regional devolution. In contrast, Labour has promised to hand over more than £6bn a year in housing, training, infrastructure and transport funds to city regions and combined local authorities following a review by shadow infrastructure spokesman Lord Adonis.

However, the chancellor is expected to set out greater proposals for devolution of civic power and responsibilities for cities with elected mayors in November.

The Conservatives lack MPs and councillors in most of the main northern cities, but Osborne will attempt to pay the region more attention as he launches a report called One North, setting out a vision for its economy for the next 15 years.

He will say: "I'm ready to commit new money, new infrastructure, new transport and new science. And real new civic power too. Today I'm setting out the pathway to this northern powerhouse, so we deliver a real improvement in the long term economic performance of the north of England.

"This will be a centrepiece of my Autumn Statement - and part of our long-term economic plan for the country."