LABOUR infighting stopped the party putting forward radical plans to devolve power to West Yorkshire, a leadership hopeful revealed.

Tristram Hunt, Labour’s education spokesman, said his party had “dithered” over giving local councils greater freedoms, fatally allowing the Conservatives to seize the agenda.

And he argued that weakness allowed the Tories to retain Northern seats at the general election, saying: “It sure as hell helped them hold the line.”

Mr Hunt’s comments came as he announced he would not stand to succeed Ed Miliband as Labour’s leader, because he is unable to win the backing of 34 fellow MPs, as the rules require.

In a speech in London, he urged colleagues to support Liz Kendall and attacked the “timid, institutionalised caution” of Labour’s election campaign, pointing to devolution as an example.

Mr Miliband pledged to devolve £30 billion of spending to cities and counties and allow them to retain any increase in business rate revenues.

But Ed Balls urged West Yorkshire’s leaders to reject a Manchester-style offer of more radical devolution, because George Osborne was demanding a cross-border ‘metro mayor’.

Mr Hunt said: "The truth is that collectively we dithered - the Shadow Cabinet was not united."

Keighley Conservative MP Kris Hopkins, a former local government minister, said Mr Hunt had promised “big ideas on devolution to launch his leadership bid”.

But he added: “Sadly, given his sudden change of heart, his views are now as irrelevant as his increasingly irrelevant party.”

Since the Conservative election victory, the West Yorkshire Combined Authority has performed a U-turn by agreeing to “consult” on a metro mayor, having previously opposed the idea.