Liverpool’s Commonwealth Games bid was fatally flawed

Liverpool’s Commonwealth Games bid was fatally flawed

Liverpool’s Lib Dem Leader, Cllr Richard Kemp, has accused the Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, of “once again seeking to lay the blame for his failures on others, instead of looking in the mirror.”

His comment comes as the Mayor furiously accuses the Government of favouring Birmingham with the announcement of funding for a homes package initially for athletes and then for conversion to general homes use for the Birmingham community.

Cllr Kemp says, “That money might have been available to Liverpool had the main bid proceeded but the bid was fatally flawed by having a new stadium for Everton FC at its heart.

“We have been repeatedly told by the Mayor that an announcement will still be made in respect of the funding for the Stadium. In fact, two years ago he made the unbelievable statement that the Stadium would be ready this October. But the money was not in place at the time of the bid, and does not appear to be in place now. There is no way that a stadium could now be built in time for the Commonwealth Games in 2022. The bid judges obviously had that in mind as a major part of their rejection of Liverpool which meant that we spent £1.1 million on a bid that had a huge hole at its heart.

“This is typical of a Mayor that throws accusations around about everyone else’s motives and competences, but does not face up to the reality that much of what he does is ill thought out and misdirected.”