Editing Liverpool (section)

=== City Council criticism and improvement ===

In recent years, [[Liverpool City Council]] began an extensive improvement program designed to ensure that the authority makes efficient use of [[taxpayer]]'s money and to encourage more business and investment in the city. [[Grosvenor Group]], the property company responsible for [[Liverpool One]], commended the changes as an "opportunity for bold thinking in liverpool".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Grosvenor hopeful of return to 'bold' thinking in Liverpool|url=https://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/grosvenor-hopeful-of-return-to-bold-thinking-in-liverpool|access-date=8 October 2023|website=placenorthwest.co.uk|date=28 September 2023|archive-date=2 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102184254/https://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/grosvenor-hopeful-of-return-to-bold-thinking-in-liverpool/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2021, a highly critical government inspection and subsequent report of Liverpool City Council (referred to as the Caller report) identified multiple shortcomings at Liverpool City Council. The [[Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government]], [[Robert Jenrick]] sent government [[commissioner]]s to oversee the City Council's highways, regeneration, property management, governance and financial decision-making. The authority was compelled to commit to a three-year improvement plan in which the entire structure of the council would be overhauled. As a result of the intervention, major structural changes at the City Council took place by the [[2023 United Kingdom local elections]], which were labelled "the most unpredictable [elections] in the city's history". The number of electoral wards in the city was doubled from 30 to 64, while the overall number of City Councillors up for election was reduced from 90 to 85. In future, the council would also change to 'all out' elections every four years whereby every single City Councillor would be eligible for re-election at the same time. The role of [[Mayor of Liverpool|elected city mayor]] was also abolished and the Council reverted to the previous [[Executive arrangements|Leader and Cabinet]] style of leadership. The outcome of the elections were seen not only as a test of how the general public would respond to the government intervention in the city, but also to 
Prime Minister [[Rishi Sunak]]'s government as a whole.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Why this month's local elections in Liverpool could the most unpredictable in the city's history|url=https://www.itv.com/news/granada/2023-04-28/another-major-contest-heading-to-liverpool-in-may|access-date=25 September 2023|website=itv.com|archive-date=25 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925202902/https://www.itv.com/news/granada/2023-04-28/another-major-contest-heading-to-liverpool-in-may|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Liverpool City Council: Volume 691: debated on Wednesday 24 March 2021|url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2021-03-24/debates/D5462F6C-2F3A-425D-A5A2-96998A1050BA/LiverpoolCityCouncil#contribution-A781CB1C-F978-4AE3-BB94-8350F8ED5DD6|access-date=25 September 2023|website=hansard.parliament.uk|archive-date=25 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925202903/https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2021-03-24/debates/D5462F6C-2F3A-425D-A5A2-96998A1050BA/LiverpoolCityCouncil#contribution-A781CB1C-F978-4AE3-BB94-8350F8ED5DD6|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Government decision on Best Value interventions announced|url=https://liverpoolexpress.co.uk/government-decision-on-best-value-interventions-announced|access-date=25 September 2023|website=liverpoolexpress.co.uk|date=10 June 2021|archive-date=25 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925202941/https://liverpoolexpress.co.uk/government-decision-on-best-value-interventions-announced/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Government increases intervention in Liverpool after another critical report|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/steve-rotheram-greg-clark-liverpool-city-council-liverpool-government-b2148526.html|access-date=25 September 2023|website=independent.co.uk|date=19 August 2022|archive-date=25 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925202902/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/steve-rotheram-greg-clark-liverpool-city-council-liverpool-government-b2148526.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Councillor [[Liam Robinson (politician)|Liam Robinson]] became the new Leader of Liverpool City Council at the 2023 City Council election. The Liverpool Strategic Futures Advisory Panel, chaired by the [[Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region|Mayor of Liverpool City Region]] [[Steve Rotheram]], and including several high-profile figures with experience in [[Local government in England|local government]], was established. The panel was tasked with directing the council's long-term future outside of government intervention measures and to advise on plans and priorities that the city should pursue.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Trio tasked with shaping Liverpool's long-term future meet for the first time|url=https://www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/trio-tasked-with-shaping-liverpools-long-term-future-meet-for-the-first-time|access-date=25 September 2023|website=liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk|archive-date=25 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925202923/https://www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/trio-tasked-with-shaping-liverpools-long-term-future-meet-for-the-first-time/|url-status=live}}</ref>[[File:Liverpool Town Hall front 2018.jpg|thumb|right|[[Liverpool Town Hall]] houses the official office for the [[Lord Mayor of Liverpool]]|206x206px]]In February 2008, Liverpool City Council was reported to be the worst-performing council in the country, receiving just a one-star rating (classified as inadequate). The main cause of the poor rating was attributed to the council's poor handling of tax-payer money, including the accumulation of a £20m shortfall while the city held the title of [[European Capital of Culture]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Coligan|first=Nick|title=Official: Liverpool city council is worst – yes, the WORST – in the country|website=[[Liverpool Echo]]|date=7 February 2008|url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/local-news/2008/02/07/official-liverpool-city-council-is-worst-yes-the-worst-in-the-country-100252-20446758/|access-date=23 September 2008|archive-date=22 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120522095040/http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/local-news/2008/02/07/official-liverpool-city-council-is-worst-yes-the-worst-in-the-country-100252-20446758/|url-status=live}}</ref> In April 2024, the [[Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities|Office for Local Government]] released a ranking of local authorities, placing Liverpool City Council 317th out of a possible 318.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Ellson|first=Andrew|date=30 April 2024|title=Worst-performing councils in England revealed — where does yours rank?|newspaper=[[The Times]]|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/worst-council-england-uk-nottingham-xkpb5jzmz|access-date=30 April 2024|issn=0140-0460|archive-date=30 April 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240430153000/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/worst-council-england-uk-nottingham-xkpb5jzmz|url-status=live}}</ref>