ERIC Pickles has said the Government will stay out of the Liverpool Waters wrangle by not calling a public inquiry - effectively opening the doors for Peel Holdings' 30-year outline plan to go ahead.
The Communities Secretary said it was “content” to leave all decisions regarding the plans up to Liverpool City Council - which gave the £5.5bn scheme its blessing last year.
The announcement was hailed by the Isle of Man developer as “our Government wishing a Happy New Year to Peel and Liverpool”. Mayor Joe Anderson said it was “fantastic news” for the city.
Rate relief
And Peel hit back at the scheme's main detractors, UNESCO and English Heritage, saying: “Their studies and arguments have all collapsed and rightly so.”
The construction giant, which owns The Trafford Centre, Media City, the Port of Salford, John Lennon Airport and the Port of Liverpool, claims that Liverpool Waters will create 20,000 jobs, thousands of apartments, hotels, skyscrapers and a cruise terminal. Liverpool City Council has promised commercial tenants five years business rate relief and superfast broadband.
No starting date has, so far, been slated.
The proposals have been beset with controversy.
Last year, Peel threatened to walk away altogether if the Government called its plans in for public scrutiny.
UNESCO had said Liverpool's status as a World Heritage Site – which it shares with the likes of the Pyramids in Egypt and the Taj Mahal - would be under threat if the development, surrounding the city's Central Docks, went ahead. A visiting UNESCO team of inspectors subsequently put the city on its “at risk” register.
Liverpool Central Docks
Liverpool’s planning committee initially granted planning permission for the scheme in March 2012, with a number of conditions - including those relating to timescales, the heights of buildings and phasing of works.
The city council and Peel worked together to address these conditions, before officially submitting the plans to the Government in October.
Owing to the size and controversy surrounding the scheme, there was high expectation that it Pickles would call them in for a public inquiry, particularly when its own watchdog, English Heritage, chipped in.
In a scathing attack revealed by Liverpool Confidential, Henry Owen-John, English Heritage Planning and Conservation Director for the North West, claimed its own technical and legal advice had been ignored. It called the council's planning conditions “muddled, badly drafted and insufficiently precise”, adding that it doubted they were “legally sustainable”.
Nevertheless, today's letter from from the Department for Communities and Local Government stated: The secretary of state’s general approach is not to interfere with the jurisdiction of the local planning authority unless it is necessary to do so.”
PicklesIt went on: "Ministers have carefully considered all the relevant planning issues raise by the application and have concluded that they are content to leave the decision to the local planning authority who are best placed to determine the application."
Individual buildings will still have to go through the the planning process as and when the time comes, but today Peel's Development Director Lindsey Ashworth was buoyant:“This is a well-deserved reward and justice for all those who never gave up supporting this scheme. It’s our Government wishing a Happy New Year to Peel and Liverpool.”
AndersonHe added: “English Heritage together with the World Heritage Body UNESCO put up massive obstacles to prevent this development proposal getting permission. Their studies and arguments have all collapsed and rightly so as it’s simply not right to expect derelict parts of cities with such a rich history to stand still and be fossilised.
This consent will open up opportunities and new prospects to link our UK businesses with other international businesses such as Asia.
“All cities in the UK have to compete with each other and each has to compete with rival European cities. Liverpool is now well placed to be alongside the best of the best”.
Mayor Anderson added: “This is fantastic news for Liverpool. I’m absolutely delighted that the Secretary of State shares the confidence we have in our ability to deliver this vitally important regeneration scheme, while protecting our architectural heritage.
“Today’s announcement marks the start of a new era for Liverpool.
“Liverpool Waters will create thousands of jobs and opportunities for local people, as well as providing new housing and attracting new businesses and visitors.
Lindsey Ashworth“It’s a huge boost for our city and yet more evidence that despite the recession, regeneration is forging ahead here. We can now look forward to the plans moving forward on this once-in-a-lifetime scheme which will bring huge, lasting benefits to future generations in this city.
“It’s vital that Peel delivers these plans in a way which meets the conditions set out by the planning committee and we’ll be working closely with them to make sure this is achieved.”
