Transport minister receives Liverpool Daily Post's Get On Board cruise campaign petition
TheDaily Post handed over its Get On Board cruise campaign petition in person to the transport minister Mike Penning MP in London yesterday afternoon.
Mr Penning was clearly impressed by the 2,500 signatures collected from Daily Post readers and the amount of articles written in support of lifting the ban on cruise turnarounds - ie starting and finishing - from Liverpool Pier Head.
We made the journey to the Department of Transport, in Westminster, specifically to ensure Mr Penning received the petition before he arrives in Liverpool on Thursday to discuss the ban with Liverpool City Council.
The ban was imposed as a condition of the £15m EU grant used to build the Liverpool Cruise Terminal, opened in 2007, which currently can only be used for liner visits.
Mr Penning, who will meet Liverpool City Council leader, Cllr Joe Anderson, said: “I am really looking forward to coming to Liverpool to talk about this matter.”
Cllr Anderson said he is determined to get permission for cruise liner turnarounds to be based at the Pier Head.
Speaking tothe Daily Post at his ministry office, Mr Penning said: “Hopefully we can move forward with this issue.
“The previous government’s minister looked at the problem and rejected the argument based on the funding restrictions.
“I’ve been asked by the local authority to come and discuss the situation which I shall do on Thursday.
“I understand how important the cruise turnaround question is to Liverpool, but I need to come up with an open mind.
“The cruise industry is expanding and has made huge investments in ships such as Cunard Line’s new Queen Elizabeth, in spite of the recession.”
However, Mr Penning would not be drawn on whether developing the cruise industry in Liverpool would fulfil the government’s aim for private investment to replace the reduced public sector.
He said: “I am very conscious of Liverpool’s heritage in the passenger shipping business.
“But I am the custodian of the taxpayers’ money, so I have to come and look and listen before I make my decision.”
Mr Penning said the last time he visited the city was 20 years ago to see his team Tottenham Hotspur lose 6-1 to Liverpool.
He added: “I was with a group of friends and when the locals realised we weren’t plain clothes policemen they became really friendly to us!”
It is hoped that such warm recollections are a good omen for Mr Penning’s discussions with Liverpool City Council.
During his visit Mr Penning will also visit Peel Ports Mersey headquarters at Royal Seaforth Dock, north Liverpool.
[Image: Transport Minister Mike Penning receives the Get On Board petition]
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