Can Liverpool really add £10bn to its economy?
The Labour mayor of the Liverpool City Region has unveiled a 10-year plan to create tens of thousands of jobs and add £10bn to the local economy.
Steve Rotheram’s “bold and ambitious” plan has been described as a “roadmap” to increasing wages, driving investment, raising living standards and providing better services for the region’s 1.6m residents.
Under the proposals, productivity would be increased across the region which, if boosted to the national average, would add £6bn to its £43.3bn-a-year economy.
Liverpool leaders said this would be achieved by “building on the city region’s world leading innovation” while “accelerating growth” of its most productive sectors including advanced
manufacturing, health and life sciences, digital and technology and creative industries supported by maritime, professional and business services and the visitor economy.
According to the proposals, the Liverpool City Region Growth Plan could add more than £10bn
extra to the economy and create tens of thousands of jobs.
The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has said that since devolution in 2017, more than 35,000 homes have been added to its housing stock, over 74,000 apprenticeships started, the number of jobs has increased by 45,000.
The city region’s £11bn investment pipeline and the Life Sciences Innovation Zone and LCR Freeport, under a shared Industrial Strategy Zone status, have been highlighted as key areas of growth for Liverpool in the plan.
Major tourism plan launched in January
The latest plan comes after the Liverpool City Region unveiled a five-year plan in January which it hoped would boost the region’s economy, create jobs and become the go-to destination in the country.
Liverpool has been emboldened in its ambitions after hosting major cultural and sporting events in recent years, such as Eurovision and the Open golf championship.
According to figures published by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority at the time, the area’s visitor economy generates £6.25bn a year and employs more than 58,000 people.
That’s still some way off London’s which generates more than £14bn a year.
Liverpool leaders also say that the region attracts around 60m visitors annually – a figure which probably would not stand up to much scrutiny as the whole of the UK welcomed around 130m people in the year to September 2024, according to Visit Britain.
That’s still some way off London’s which generates more than £14bn a year.
To back up its new vision, the region unveiled a new designation management plan alongside Local Visitor Enterprise Partnership (LVEP) “that sets out for the first time a unified vision across the city region to further accelerate growth over the next five years”.
The stated aim is to make the city region, which includes Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral, “the best place in the UK to ‘visit and stay for a for a day, a week or a lifetime’ by 2030”.
‘The word growth can often feel a bit abstract’
Steve Rotheram, mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: “Nobody on the doorstep has ever asked me to explain my growth plan for the city region – but this document is possibly the most important strategic document we will ever produce.
“Our growth plan is a blueprint for a fairer, greener, more prosperous future – one where ambition, partnership and determination come together to create jobs, power homes with clean energy, and give every child the chance to reach their full potential here.
“I know the word ‘growth’ can often feel a bit abstract – it doesn’t mean much to ordinary people in their daily lives.
“What really matters is what growth means in practice. It’s about jobs you can build a life on, opportunities for your kids and grandkids, new homes you can afford to live in, investments in public transport and investment that brings prosperity back to our communities.
“This is our moment to show the country what we can achieve when we back ourselves, invest in our own future, and build the infrastructure for the next generation.”