Intervention at Liverpool City Council
Source: gov.uk (2025-07-17)

Documents relating to the inspection into the governance of Liverpool City Council and the best value intervention.

This page collates all the publications relating to the inspection by Max Caller CBE into Liverpool City Council conducted under section 10 of the Local Government Act 1999, and the subsequent intervention.

It is a matter of public record that at the time, Merseyside Police had for many months been conducting an investigation which resulted in a number of arrests made on suspicion of fraud, bribery, corruption and misconduct in public office, both in December 2019 and in September 2020. Further arrests were made on 4 December 2020 in connection with offences of bribery and witness intimidation. This investigation involves a significant connection to Liverpool City Council.

On 7 December 2020, the then Secretary of State met officers from Liverpool City Council at his request and was given a range of assurances about the steps taken to improve governance in the Council. This was followed by a letter sent to Liverpool City Council on 8 December (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/liverpool-city-council-letter-seeking-written-assurance) seeking written assurances, including on the steps the Council had taken to improve governance and to ensure that the Council was operating properly and in line with its Best Value Duty. Liverpool City Council submitted their response on 11 December 2020.

On 17 December 2020, the then Secretary of State announced the appointment of Max Caller CBE (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2020-12-17/hcws681) to conduct an independent inspection of Liverpool City Council’s compliance with its Best Value Duty in relation to the Authority’s planning, highways, regeneration and property management functions and the strength of associated audit and governance arrangements.

A letter informing the Council of the Inspection was also sent on the day of the announcement, 17 December 2020.

On 7 January 2021, Mervyn Greer and Vivienne Geary were appointed as assistant inspectors.

The independent inspection report (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/liverpool-city-council-best-value-inspection-report) was published on 24 March 2021, giving evidence that the Council had failed in numerous ways to comply with its Best Value Duty.

Also on 24 March 2021, the then Secretary of State made an oral statement (https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/secretary-of-state-statement-liverpool-city-council) in the House of Commons in which he proposed that he was minded to:
- appoint Commissioners (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/liverpool-city-council-letter-to-the-chief-executive-setting-out-the-proposed-intervention-package) to exercise certain and limited functions of the council as required for a minimum of 3 years
- use his powers under the Local Government Act 2000 to provide for Liverpool City Council to hold whole council elections for the first time from 2023; and for a reduced number of Councillors elected on a single member ward basis
Representations on the package from the Council and other interested parties were invited by 24 May 2021. Following consideration of these representations, on 10 June 2021 the then Secretary of State confirmed in a written ministerial statement (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2021-06-10/hcws84) that he was sending Commissioners into Liverpool City Council (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/local-government-secretary-appoints-commissioners-to-support-liverpool-city-council).

On 25 November 2021, the then Secretary of State published the Commissioners’ first report (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/liverpool-city-council-commissioners-first-report). In this, they described how Liverpool City Council was facing significant challenges and was at the start of a long improvement journey.

In his response, the then Secretary of State fully endorsed Commissioners’ account of progress to date and what was required going forward. He noted that he agreed with Commissioners that they would submit their next report to him in April 2022. Read his announcement in the written ministerial statement (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2021-11-25/hcws422).

In April 2022, the then Secretary of State agreed that the submission of the Commissioners’ second report would take place on 10 June 2022 rather than in April 2022. Commissioners requested an extension in order to allow the second report to detail progress being made against critical workstreams being undertaken by Liverpool City Council. The Secretary of State agreed this approach by correspondence and placed copies of the letters in the Libraries of both Houses, as well as publishing them here.

On 10 June 2022, the then Secretary of State received the Commissioners’ second report. The report found that in addition to the best value failures identified within the best value inspection there were further instances of failure within Liverpool City Council. Commissioners outlined that further Directions would be required to resolve the problems identified within the Council.

On 19 August 2022, the then Secretary of State announced that he was minded-to use his powers under the Local Government Act 1999 to expand the intervention at the Council and invited representations from the Council and other interested parties by 2 September 2022. The Secretary of State also announced that he intended to establish a Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel to work closely with the City Mayor Joanne Anderson and her Cabinet and with the Commissioners, to help the Council make the right decisions and to develop a plan to give long term confidence in the future of the city, including in affecting jobs and investment, beyond the current temporary intervention.

Following consideration of representations, on 8 November 2022 the Secretary of State confirmed via written ministerial statement (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2022-11-08/hcws361) the appointment of a finance Commissioner and the expansion of the intervention to cover finance, governance and recruitment government officials also wrote to the Council outlining the updated Directions for the intervention.

On 13 February 2023, the Secretary of State received the Commissioners’ third report. In the report, Commissioners stated that they were cautiously optimistic about progress the Council was making. However, the next year would bring significant change, and while this provided opportunity for the Council’s improvement journey, it also carried risk to the stability of the organisation, and should be managed carefully.

On 6 October 2023, the Secretary of State received the Commissioners’ fourth report. The report documented that Commissioner optimism had continued over the previous 6 months, that the new leadership of the Council had shown grip as they continued to make improvements and that Commissioners believed they were well placed to deal with challenges. It also outlined that more time was needed to observe the impact of this new leadership in driving improvement; that a number of aspects across the Council required significant improvement; and that they currently expected their March report to recommend the statutory intervention would need to extend in some form beyond June 2024.

On 13 December 2023, the Minister for Local Government announced that the Secretary of was minded-to make changes to the existing Directions (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2023-12-13/hcws121) including returning functions to the Council and making some new Directions. He invited representations from the Council and other interested parties by 2 January 2024.

Following consideration of representations, the Secretary of State confirmed via a written ministerial statement on 7 March 2024 (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2024-03-07/hcws319) that he had issued new Directions to the Council to support a phased transition towards the next stage of the intervention.

On 8 May 2024, the Minister for Local Government announced (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2024-05-08/hcws446) that the Secretary of State was minded-to extend the intervention until 31 March 2025 and appoint a statutory Assurance and Improvement Board instead of the current Commissioner model, underpinned by new Directions. He invited representations from the Council and other interested parties by 13 May 2024.

An announcement on next steps for the statutory intervention at Liverpool City Council was not made before the General Election was called on 22 May 2024. The statutory intervention ended when the Directions and Commissioner appointments expired on 9 June 2024.

On 5 August 2024, a letter was sent to Liverpool City Council (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/liverpool-city-council-letter-to-council-leader-5-august-2024) confirming that the Minister of State planned to assess the progress made by the Council in the autumn and review how the government could better work with the Council during the next phase of Liverpool City Council’s recovery journey. He asked for the Council and the Chair of its Improvement and Assurance Board to provide updates in October 2024 about the Council’s progress, and compliance with the Best Value duty, and how the Board was working.

On 19 December 2024, letters were sent by the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution to the Leader of Liverpool City Council (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/liverpool-city-council-letter-to-council-leader-19-december-2024) and the Liverpool Improvement and Assurance Board chair (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/liverpool-city-council-letter-to-the-chair-of-the-liverpool-improvement-and-assurance-board-19-december-2024), responding to the updates provided by the Council and the Board in October 2024. In his letters, the Minister welcomed the continued progress and asked for a further update in March 2025, including on their longer-term plans of continuous improvement, including through external support and challenge.

On 17 July 2025, the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution confirmed via written ministerial statement (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2025-07-17/hcws845) that he has written to the Leader of Liverpool City Council and the Liverpool Improvement and Assurance Board chair, welcoming the progress the Council has continued to make, noting the end of the non statutory board and confirming the department’s involvement reduces.