Glasgow will today be unveiled as the winner of a £24 million competition to find the UK's city of the future.

It saw off stiff competition from 29 rivals to become a model for other cities across the country.

The move will see Glasgow demonstrate new ideas of how urban areas might work in coming decades.

The investment will be used to improve infrastructure, in a bid to boost residents' quality of life.

The announcement will be made by the Conservative Universities and Science Minister David Willetts. Other senior figures from Glasgow will also attend the event at the City Chambers.

A source close to Mr Willetts said: "With this investment Glasgow will become a more efficient city with a reduced impact on the environment, an improved local economy and an increased quality of life for its people."

Last year ministers said that a significant prize awaited the winner of the competition.

Applicants were challenged to show how they would bring together and improve transport, communications and public services to boost the well-being of their residents and demonstrate to others how they could do the same.

Ministers said they wanted to find ways to improve cities across the UK, many of which suffer from increasing problems with traffic and waste as well as rising populations and changing demographics.

It is expected that, as part of the scheme, Glasgow will act as a test bed for new developments, allowing researchers and companies to put ideas into practice.

The large-scale demonstrator will be made up of a series of projects that will improve transport and mobility. It will develop programmes to promote healthy living, deliver advanced street lighting to address community safety and perception of crime, and enhance building energy efficiency to provide affordable warmth.

A key part of the move is to ensure the improvements are environmentally friendly.

Last year both Glasgow and Edinburgh were named among Europe's top cities of the future.

Investment publication fDi Magazine said they had strong potential to capitalise on future investment and expansion.