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Andy Burnham praised the regeneration of British cities as "putting back hope where the heart was ripped out" in his address to Labour conference this morning.

The secretary of state for Culture Media and Sport told delegates: "We took the best that this country could offer in culture and sport to the places that were crushed by Conservatism. Regeneration of towns and cities up and down the country led by culture, sport, the arts, heritage and the creative industries – no better illustrated than here in Manchester and Salford."

Burnham, who reserved particular praise for an £80m sports village in his Leigh constituency, said that regeneration programmes were "inspiring hope, raising aspirations, lifting the human spirit."

He said that the Labour Party now had to "rise to the challenge of making the most of this Olympic era."