Employees would get the automatic right to club together to buy their company if it is put up for sale or floated on the stock market under moves being backed by Labour.

On Friday Ed Miliband will commit a Labour government to ushering in a new era of employee ownership as he seeks to regain the initiative following attacks on party policies from a succession of business chiefs.

Mr Miliband will argue that many entrepreneurs who decide to move on or retire would like to sell their business to their staff and that the policy would boost companies by tapping into the skills and enthusiasm of existing employees.

Under the Labour plan, employees would gain the statutory right to mount a bid for a firm which is being sold, wound up or floated on the stock market. Staff would be given advance warning and would be guaranteed the time to raise the money to match competing offers.

The scheme is part of a package of proposals which Labour insists will give employees and consumers extra influence over the operation of companies and services.

In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Show all 18 1 /18 In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal The beggar Ed Miliband casually gives money to a homeless woman in Manchester, surrounded by press photographers. In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal The Bacon Sandwich Ed Miliband buys a bacon sandwich from cafe owner Antonios Foufas at New Covent Garden Market in London as he kicks off a day of campaigning on the eve of the local and European elections In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal The Bacon Sandwich Ed Miliband chats with a cafe owner Antonios Foufas at New Covent Garden Market in London In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal The Bacon Sandwich Ed Miliband embarked on a whirlwind campaign tour of England - but struggled at the first hurdle (a bacon sandwich). Aides intervened after just a few less-than-elegant bites Jeremy Selwyn In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Flower Shopping Ed Miliband talks with a couple of traders at New Covent Garden Market in London In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Flower Shopping Ed Miliband purchases some red roses for his wife at New Covent Garden Market in London In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Talking Business Ed Miliband talks with a trader at New Covent Garden Market in London In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Good Morning Britain Miliband on ITV's Good Morning Britain show on 20 May 2014, a day of gaffes in which he was also caught out by BBC Wiltshire for not knowing who the local Labour leader was In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal '£70 Weekly Shop' Ed was accused of being 'out of touch with reality' after he seemed not to know what he - or the average British family - spends on a weekly food shop PA In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal The Nick Clegg Broadcast Ed Miliband took a (mis?)calculated risk with a recent political broadcast containing a satirical attack on a shrunken, naked Nick Clegg – but no details of Labour policies Getty In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Drop in Polls Ed Miliband paid a visit to Leighton Hospital in Crewe to speak with the staff about the NHS, but faced difficult questions about polls showing his personal ratings falling well behind those David Cameron and George Osborne PA In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal On the Sofa with Farage Ed Miliband appeared on the Andrew Marr Show to debate with Nigel Farage - but has all but conceded defeat in the Newark by-election, allowing Ukip a free run at the Tories BBC In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Wollies in Wellies Miliband was among a number of politicians to come under fire for 'touring' the floods in the South and South West earlier this year PA In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Wollies in Wellies The Labour leader admitted it was 'a difficult decision for politicians whether to visit areas like this' In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Missed Opportunity Miliband's performance at the Labour conference last year failed to make much of an impression on voters, polls suggested Getty Images In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Sharing the Moment Miliband, Nick Clegg, David Cameron and Angus Robinson enjoy their moment with Andy Murray, after the tennis player's Wimbledon win Getty Images In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal Casual Husband Miliband and his wife Justine are pictured in their hotel room in Brighton as he prepares to give his keynote speech to the annual Labour Party Conference Getty Images In pictures: Ed Miliband trying to look normal The Milibands Just your average family of four? Getty Images

In an article for Co-op News today, Mr Miliband claims a Labour victory would mark “the beginning of a new culture of co-operative entrepreneurship in the UK, with a growing co-operative, mutual and employee-owned sector”. He writes: “This will help to raise productivity and ensure that more working people are able to reap the rewards of economic success.”

His intervention comes at the end of a difficult week for Labour which has endured damaging headlines over the antipathy of big business to the party.

The party’s troubles came under fresh scrutiny when Lord Noon, who has given hundreds of thousands of pounds to Labour, attacked Mr Balls for forgetting a business supporter’s name and Mr Miliband for forgetting to mention the deficit during his party conference speech last year.