Change on agenda as election lessons learned

Of the Miliband brothers, he is considered further to the left of politics although he reels at being called "Red Ed". An early test will be whether he decides to re-examine Labour's election pledge to halve the deficit in four years, something Ministers are split over.

While warning of Labour's need to reconnect with its core working class vote, he has also pledged to help the "squeezed" middle classes, the vital voters who helped Labour into power 13 years ago.

The flagship policy of his leadership campaign was a living wage of around 7 an hour, higher than the minimum wage which is considered inadequate for a decent quality of life in many places, particularly in London.

He has also been heavily critical of tuition fees and argued for a graduate tax to be introduced instead, where students pay for university education according to how much they earn afterwards.

That puts him directly at odds with Shadow Home Secretary Alan Johnson – who backed David Miliband – who defended tuition fees in Saturday's Yorkshire Post and said he was "surprised and disappointed" at the calls for graduate tax.

Another issue Mr Miliband is also likely to prioritise is the building of affordable homes, an area where he says he has been influenced by experiences in Doncaster. The waiting list for social housing shot up massively during Labour's years in office.

Writing for today's Yorkshire Post, Mr Miliband said: "The message I heard from listening to Yorkshire people during the leadership campaign was clear. We did good things in Government but we lost touch in important areas.

"Families are working harder than ever but finding it harder to get by. Students worry about the cost of tuition fees. Housing is the issue that people in Doncaster talk to me about the most. Immigration is a concern.

"We have to learn the right lessons from the last election. A Labour government must boost available housing, replace tuition fees and always be on the side of families who feel squeezed.

"People who work hard should be rewarded and I will campaign for a living wage for all."

Mr Miliband will now have to wait to see who is victorious in elections for the Shadow Cabinet to see who will form the top team responsible for implementing his vision for change.

Some of the big guns who served under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown – including Jack Straw, Alistair Darling and Bob Ainsworth – have already announced they will not stand. Other MPs are lobbying fiercely for the backing of colleagues before they vote next week.

Mr Miliband will then be able to hand out portfolios to the successful candidates, a third of whom must be women. He will be hoping for his parliamentary colleagues deliver him a team in line with his thinking.