The leading of Liverpool

17 May 2010, 11:38 Add Comment

Labour may be licking its wounds nationally following the General Election, but at a local level it regained control of a number of local authorities, including Liverpool. During the past 40 years, I think I am right in saying that Liverpool has only had the same colour council as the national government on just one occasion.

This time it was the affable and able Joe Anderson that turned the Town Hall red again, gaining a remarkable nine seats from his Liberal Democrat opponents whose leader Warren Bradley, rather bizarrely, claimed that his party had lost because too many people voted! (Well, he actually blamed the 'high turnout', which amounts to the same thing).

Anderson has been quick to make his mark, with high profile announcements about appointing a business representative to his cabinet; working in partnership with the private sector to sort out the city's housing crisis and criticising Liverpool Football Club for its failure to get moving on its new stadium plan. He will get to choose his own chief executive too, with current post holder Colin Hilton announcing his plan to retire over the weekend.

The new council leader will also have a new boss at Liverpool Vision to work with. Max Steinberg, currently the chief executive of East Lancashire regeneration company Regenerate Pennine Lancashire, formerly Elevate, will succeed Jim Gill in July.

So a clean slate in Liverpool, just as much as in Westminster, but Joe Anderson has a majority that David Cameron can only dream of. No horse trading, no deals or coalitions.

Labour has a decent majority and looks set to deliver an exciting and innovative agenda given half a chance.

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