Five Liverpool councillors are still awaiting a full response from the Labour Party following their suspension at the beginning of March, raising the possibility of a new, breakaway group forming in the council chamber.
The deadline for an ultimatum laid down by the councillors is tomorrow, April 19, which called for their cases to be resolved or they would quit the party altogether. The move comes after a row emerged over the council’s budget for the next financial year.
At a full council meeting on March 2, seven then-Labour councillors defied the party whip and voted against the Labour group’s budget. The budget sought to tackle a further £25m of cuts with the introduction of a new £40 green bin charge with further cuts to some public services in the city - including aspects of social care. In response to the proposed cuts, Mayor Joanne Anderson said there were "no easy answers".
