The Conservative party is to open a new campaign headquarters in Leeds in an attempt to deliver for the former “red wall” areas that helped vote Boris Johnson into power at the last election. Amanda Milling, the co-chair of the party, was due to open the online Tory party conference on Saturday with the announcement that staff would be moved to Leeds to focus attention on the region. “We are determined to show our commitment to the blue wall seats,” Milling was expected to say. “That’s why I am thrilled to announce that CCHQ [Conservative Campaign HQ] will be opening a headquarters in Leeds. “This new headquarters will provide the party with a base at the heart of the blue wall because we’re in it for the long haul. We’re determined to make the blue wall part of the fabric of our party and our country.” A host of seats across the north of England, Midlands and parts of Wales voted in Conservative candidates – some of them for the first time in their history – at the 2019 general election, giving Johnson a landslide victory. “The best way we can deliver for people there is to be there,” Milling was expected to say. The party’s current base is in Matthew Parker Street, close to Westminster in London. It aims to open the headquarters in Leeds next year. “Leeds is a key part of our plan to build back better for the people of this country and building a campaign presence there reinforces our commitment to that task,” Milling said. Boris Johnson has said he wants to create a “generation buy”, where young people are helped to purchase homes with mortgages requiring low deposits. The prime minister will give his conference speech on Tuesday, and in an interview with the Daily Telegraph he signalled his intent to refocus efforts on his manifesto pledge to “level up” across the UK. The Tory leader told the paper he believed a large number of people felt excluded from home ownership. He said his government would “fix” the issue by helping people get on to the property ladder with mortgages requiring as little as a 5% deposit. “I think a huge, huge number of people feel totally excluded from capitalism, from the idea of home ownership, which is so vital for our society,” he told the Telegraph. “We’re going to fix that – ‘generation buy’ is what we’re going for.” He said low-deposit mortgages could be “absolutely revolutionary” for young people. The Telegraph reported that Johnson had asked ministers to work on plans encouraging long-term, fixed-rate mortgages with 5% deposits. The foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, was due to give his speech to the virtual conference on Saturday afternoon, with other cabinet ministers taking part in interviews and panel events throughout the four-day event.