The lead commissioner appointed to oversee Liverpool Council said the stewardship and spending of public money in the city is “problematic” and needs to be improved.
Speaking after the publication of a second report into the troubled local authority this morning, Mike Cunningham said the pace of change and sense of urgency to remedy the issues at the Cunard Building “have not been what we or I believe the people of Liverpool would have expected them to have been.” Mr Cunningham, who along with three other colleagues, has been in post since June last year, said the appointment of a new chief executive at Liverpool Council was a cause for optimism but a lot of work remains to be done to put things right.
As a result of the commissioners’ findings, Greg Clark MP, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government has confirmed the government intervention at the council will be significantly expanded to the point of an effective full-scale takeover. He also revealed plans for a new strategic panel to work with the council on its future plans, which will be chaired by Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram.
