Liverpool City Council

Liverpool has been a town since 1207 when it was granted its first charter by King John. It has had a town corporation (the Corporation of Liverpool) since before the 19th century, and this was one of the corporations reformed by the Municipal Corporations Act 1835. The corporation created a police force in 1836.

Liverpool was granted city status in 1880. When local government was reformed in 1888 under the Local Government Act 1888 it was one of the cities to become a county borough, and thus independent of Lancashire. This situation persisted until 1974 with the Local Government Act 1972 when due to urban expansion and the accretion of a large metropolitan area, the city was made a metropolitan district of the metropolitan county of Merseyside. This saw the old corporation nomenclature abolished and the council reconstituted as Liverpool City Council.

In 1835 Liverpool expanded into the village of Everton and then the township of Kirkdale in the 1860s. In 1895 Wavertree, Walton and parts of Toxteth and West Derby were incorporated into the city. Fazakerley (1904) and Gateacre (1913) followed, then the rest of West Derby known as West Derby Rural in 1928 and finally Speke in 1932.

In 1986 the council of Merseyside was abolished and its functions devolved to its districts, but the county still legally exists. Liverpool has never been a district council under Lancashire County Council.

In the late 1970s the City was run by the Liberal Party under Sir Trevor Jones. As part of their plans, a cost-cutting exercise was drawn up, to reduce the council's costs by 25%. In 1979 the Conservative Party won the General Election. The new government intended to cut council spending but Liverpool City Council successfully negotiated an exception from this, on the grounds that they were already following government policy and cutting 25%.

During the 1980s, the Trotskyist Militant group gained control of Liverpool's Labour Party and the council, and attempted to challenge the national government on several issues including refusing to set a budget in 1985. The council then adopted a 'deficit budget' in which spending exceeded income, causing a financial crisis. The leadership of the Labour Party was drawn into the controversy, culminating with Neil Kinnock's speech to the Party Conference in 1985, denouncing Liverpool City Council without explicitly naming it. Derek Hatton, councillor for Netherley ward and Deputy Leader of the Council, shouted "lies" at the platform, and Eric Heffer, MP for Liverpool Walton constituency, left the conference platform.[3]

The Labour Party ultimately succeeded in expelling members of Militant, and Hatton himself was expelled from the Labour Party in June 1986.[4]

• 1998 The Liberal Democrats win control of Liverpool City Council, led by Councillor Mike Storey
• 2001 Paradise Project is unveiled as a plan to transform Chavasse Park in the city centre with creation of new retail complex - to be called Liverpool ONE.
• 2003 Liverpool win the UK nomination of European Capital of Culture for 2008.
• 2004 Liverpool's waterfront and parts of the city centre are given World Heritage status.
• 2005 Liverpool Culture Company is established to deliver city's 800th anniversary in 2007 and European Capital of Culture in 2008.
• 2005 in November Lib Dem leader of the Council Mike Storey resigns after eight years following accusations of plotting to try to engineer departure of Council's Chief Executive, Sir David Henshaw.
• 2005 Cllr Storey was replaced as leader by Warren Bradley. Sir David Henshaw retired and was replaced as chief executive by Colin Hilton.
• 2005 Liverpool City Council issue a formal apology for the flooding of Capel Celyn, near Bala, North Wales. The community was destroyed and the land flooded to create Llyn Celyn in 1965. The reservoir was solely created to supply water to Liverpool and Wirral.
• 2007 Council owned St George's Hall reopens after £23m restoration programme.
• 2007 Liverpool celebrates 800th anniversary on 28 August.
• 2007 Council owned Liverpool Cruise Terminal is opened.
• 2008 Liverpool officially launches its year as European Capital of Culture on 11 January with a "people's party" outside St George's Hall, attended by more than 40,000 people. On 12 January the Liverpool Echo Arena, which is owned by the council, was officially opened with a concert featuring Liverpool music bands past and present.
• 2008 Council awarded 1 star by Audit Commission.
• 2008 Liberal Democrats lose overall control of the city on 1 May in local elections, however a midnight defection of an Independent (Former Labour) Councillor gives them a majority of 1.
• 2008 Green Party take the second seat in St Michael's ward, becoming a recognisable "group" on the council.
• 2009 The council announces a major shake up of middle management.[5]

• 2010 The Labour party win control of the council for the first time in 12 years, with Councillor Joe Anderson becoming the new council leader[6]
• 2010 The Liverpool Schools Investment Programme (LSIP) was created in response to UK government scrapping Building Schools for the Future. £180m was invested over an eight-year period, transforming 22 of the city’s primary and secondary schools - including 15 new builds.
• 2011 The Labour Party's Jake Morrison, aged 18, defeats Lord Mike Storey after 38 years service[7]
• 2012 The Labour Party's Joe Anderson was elected as the first Mayor for Liverpool on a three-year term.
• 2013 Council owned Liverpool Central Library reopens after £50m renovation.
• 2015 Joe Anderson was re-elected as Mayor of Liverpool on a five-year term.
• 2015 Joe Anderson instructs city council lawyers to help him launch legal proceedings against Chesterfield High School after it terminated his £4,500 per year role. The council spent £90,000 of public money on the case, described by the tribunal judge as a 'private' matter.[8][9]
• 2016 Council established Paddington Village - a £1bn development site to attract world-class scientific research and tech firms in the city's Knowledge Quarter. The Royal College of Physicians announced it will base its Northern HQ in Paddington Village.
• 2016 Joe Anderson announced intention to run for Labour nomination for Metro Mayor of Liverpool City Region. Steve Rotheram, Walton MP, was nominated.
• 2017 Joe Anderson announced intention to run for Labour nomination to be MP for Walton. Dan Carden was nominated.
• 2017 Council lead city's bid to host 2022 Commonwealth Games. UK Government chose Birmingham to host games.
• 2017 Council announced a new cruise terminal is to be situated in Liverpool Waters, with an estimated opening set for 2021-22.
• 2017 Chief executive Ged Fitzgerald arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and witness intimidation.[10]
• 2018 Council established an "ethical housing company", called Foundations, to deliver 10,000 new homes over the next decade.
• 2018 Liverpool bid to be new Headquarters for Channel 4. The city is shortlisted but Leeds is chosen.
• 2018 Labour lose 3 seats to the Liberal Democrats. In wake of the election result, Assistant Mayor Councillor Nick Small was sacked. Deputy Mayor Councillor Ann O'Byrne resigned in protest. Councillor Wendy Simon was appointed Deputy Mayor.
• 2019 Labour lose 2 seats to the Liberal Democrats and 1 to Liberal Party. As polls close Councillor Ann O'Byrne, Deputy Leader of the Group posts motion to rescind directly elected Mayoral model. Motion is not voted at party AGM, but party agrees to host a review of the structure. Councillor O'Byrne loses vote to remain as Deputy Leader, which is won by Councillor Wendy Simon.
• 2019 Liverpool City Council is chosen as the UK's No1 event organiser - and the only council to feature in World's top 30 list of the EventEx Awards.
• 2019 Labour Councillor Paul Kenyon resigns his Picton (ward) seat citing Jeremy Corbyn's failure to adequately deal with abuse directed towards him by party members and to protect Wavertree MP Luciana Berger from anti-Semitic abuse [11] [12]
• 2019 Labour Councillor Dave Cummings is suspended by the Labour Party for making sexist comments about Labour MEP Theresa Griffin.[13] He is later convicted of criminal damage, but refuses to resign his position.[14]
• 2019 Council's head of regeneration, Nick Kavanagh, and director of property developer Elliot Group, Elliot Lawless, arrested by Merseyside Police for a number of alleged offences including conspiracy to defraud, misconduct in public office and bribery. Their arrests were later quashed after a High Court review. Neither man was charged.[15][16]
• 2020 It is reported the city council's public accounts since 2015 have not been certified by auditors due to the 'ongoing complex police investigation' involving the council's former chief executive.[17]
• 2020 Notorious Labour Councillor Sam Gorst is suspended by the Labour Party for inappropriate conduct on social media.[18] The vocal Jeremy Corbyn supporter had been involved in previous allegations of antisemitism.[19]
• 2020 Nick Kavanagh is re-arrested for alleged bribery-related offences, together with four others, regarding alleged preferential sale of several sites in Liverpool city centre to Elliot Group.[20][21][15][22]
• 2020 Joe Anderson, Liverpool city's mayor, arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit bribery and witness intimidation as part of a police investigation into the award of construction contracts in Liverpool.[23]

On 18 December 2019, Nick Kavanagh, Liverpool council's then regeneration chief and Elliot Lawless, head of property development company Elliot Group, were arrested by Merseyside Police on suspicion of a number of alleged offences including conspiracy to defraud, misconduct in public office and bribery, reported the Liverpool Echo newspaper.[16] The charges related to "the sale of council land and building property" in the "Georgian quarter and Toxteth" and the allegation that "Mr Lawless was able to secure two sites on an 'improperly preferential basis'", according to a consent order obtained in a High Court application by the newspaper.[20]

Both were reportedly released on bail in March 2020.[15] No charges were brought against them and their arrest warrants were quashed, with the police reportedly citing "technical difficulties".[44] Mr Lawless had applied for a High Court review of the arrests, which found in April 2020 that a search of Mr Lawless’ home shortly before his arrest had been unlawful.[15] The proceedings were reportedly "concluded by consent" between Merseyside Police and Mr Lawless. However, a police statement noted an investigation would continue and that it retained £337,342.00 and €10,442.10 in cash seized from property and vehicles connected to Mr Lawless under the Proceeds of Crime Act, and "copies of exhibits seized" at the time of the arrests.[44] Mr Lawless denies any wrong-doing. Mr Kavanagh has reportedly not spoken publicly since his arrest.[21] On 11 May 2020, the Echo reported Liverpool council had suspended Mr. Kavanagh.[20]

On 3 September 2020, Mr. Kavanagh was reportedly re-arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit bribery, together with four others.[22][15]

On 7 September 2020, Merseyside Police was granted permission to retain the cash seized in December 2019 for a further 90 days, the third such successful extension request.[45]

In April 2015, Liverpool Echo reported Mayor Joe Anderson had instructed Liverpool City Council lawyers to assist him in a legal dispute he was bringing against Chesterfield High School for unfair dismissal. The school had dismissed Anderson after he had not worked at the school for two years. The council spent over £89,500 from public funds to support Anderson's application to the employment tribunal over two and a half years. The initial tribunal found the school was within its rights to terminate Anderson's contract, however they had not followed the correct procedure to do so. Anderson appealed against the finding but lost.[8][9]

On 5 December 2020 Joe Anderson was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit bribery and witness intimidation, as part of a police investigation, dubbed Operation Aloft, into alleged fraud in the award of construction contracts in the Liverpool city area. Four other men were also arrested. It it is not clear whether the arrests were related to the council bribery allegations involving Nick Kavanagh and Elliot Lawless (see above). Anderson said he had been interviewed for over six hours by police and bailed to return in a month. The Labour Party suspended Anderson on news of his arrest. Liverpool City Council said it would not comment on matters relating to an individual.[46][47]