•Conservative leader plans "radical redistribution of power" •Plans to allow public access to crime statistics

David Cameron will today pledge to campaign for a new “right to data”, offering voters more information on a range of key areas.

In a speech later today, the Conservative leader will accuse Labour of creating a “control state” and of limiting political accountability.

The 20 areas covered under Cameron’s plan include the performance of schools and hospitals, crime statistics and the salaries of quango heads. The “right to data” will also allow voters to request information in further areas.

In the speech at Imperial College London, Cameron will say: “A radical redistribution of power also means increasing our power over the state which means advancing political accountability.

“Information is power – because information gives people the tools to hold the powerful to account.”

He will argue that recent events, such as the leaking of MPs’ expenses to the Daily Telegraph, have led to an expectation that information on public institutions will be transparent and accessible.

"What the Daily Telegraph did – the simple act of providing information to the public – has triggered the biggest shake-up in our political system for years," he will say.

"Information alone has been more powerful than years of traditional politics. Of course it has been a painful time for politics and for individual politicians – but let us be clear, it is without question a positive development for the country.

"It is information – not a new law, not some regulation – just the provision of information – that has enabled people to take on the political class, question them, demand answers, and get those answers."

Cameron will point out that only a minority of the UK's 10,000 public bodies currently make information available.

Gordon Brown is currently exploring plans to widen the Freedom of Information Act and his recruited Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the internet, to advise him on increasing access to government data.

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