Recently in Liverpool City Council Category

Before I started work at the Liverpool Daily Post in the summer of 2007, I had covered politics in Blackburn for the Lancashire Telegraph.

So naturally when @blackburnlabour started following me on Twitter a couple of months back I returned the compliment.

The local party has also created a great blog at blackburnlabour.org

Today I found myself yet again reporting the saga of one of Liverpool's historic buildings, Josephine Butler House.

Other previous stories can be found here, here and here.

Last year Maghull Developments caused controversy when they were acussed of "hacking the front" off the Victorian building, which sits at the junction of Hope Street and Myrtle Street, ahead of an application for it to be listed.

I've spotted a paragraph in some Liverpool Council documents about the city's "failing infrastructure".

On face value this is a very stark thing for the straight talking city treasurer Robert Corbett to be writing about.

New evidence of the downturn in the property market has emerged today from Liverpool Council who have been offered a piece of land free of charge.

Unable to sell the land in Latimer Street, Kirkdale (next to a council shopping parade), English Partnerships has agreed to literally give the land to the council.

"English Partnerships inherited the land from Liverpool Housing Action Trust and as they have no desire to retain the land, an approach was made to ascertain whether the city council wished to purchase the site," says a council report.

There's a saying that when one door closes another one opens. Maybe the same should be said for ethical standards complaints in Liverpool.

No sooner than the Standards Board for England have cleared council leader Warren Bradley, Liberal leader Steve Radford find himself the subject of a local standards investigation.

The case centres around Cllr Radford being called a Liberal Democrat and not a Liberal by Operation Black Vote (OBV) officials.

The Mayor for Liverpool campaign has been spearheaded by former BBC journalist Liam Fogarty, who has so far failed to gather enough support to force a referendum.

Here he guest blogs for Dale Street Blues:

David Cameron wants Liverpool and 11 other cities to have London-style elected Mayors.

He wants accountable, high-profile people with real power leading our cities.

The Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg likes the idea, too ( Go on Nick, make that 'phone call to Liverpool Direct, and ask for the Leader's office...)

The Conservatives are today grabbing headlines for their proposals to hold a referendum to decide if Liverpool should be run by a directly-elected mayor within one year of a Conservative government taking power.

Tony Blair was often said to have been disappointed that only a handful of places like Hartlepool took up elected mayors, now David "heir to Blair" Cameron is promising to force large cities to hold referenda on the topic.

In Liverpool, four names are often mentioned as candidates: council leader Warren Bradley; Labour opposition leader Joe Anderson; culture supremo Phil Redmond; and business lobbyist Frank McKenna.

New storms are brewing tonight over Liverpool Council's budget...

Yesterday, the Liberal Democrat administration was announcing a U-turn on proposals to axe 25 lollipop men and women.

Lobby group downtown Liverpool in Business has launched a campaign demanding the council reverse its plan to charge for city centre parking until 8pm (at the moment it becomes free after six).

I'm not surprised that we are this afternoon reporting that Liverpool Council's Liberal Democrat administration has announced a U-turn on proposals to axe 25 lollipop men and women.

This was a tremendously unpopular proposal, and after all would only have saved £200,000 (which will now come out of the Highways budget).

The Lib-Dem administration are basically blaming the city's officials for the proposals saying they were not fully aware of the detail of what had been suggested.

Here's more proof that football and politics are inextricably linked.

Liverpool Lord Mayor (still sporting an 08 pin) was caught on camera yesterday at Anfield for Liverpool FC's 2 - 0 win over Chelsea giving tactical advice to England manager Fabio Capello.

So now we now who to blame if England go on a losing streak.