Liverpool Council set to buy waterfront land for £1

Liverpool City Council is set to purchase a vast area of waterfront land for £1.

A report due before the council's cabinet on Friday recommending the sale would give it ownership of 55,000 sq metres of land at Kings Dock.

The council already holds the majority of the dock estate under three 999 year leases.

It includes land where the M&S Bank Arena, and convention and exhibition centres sit.

The new purchase comes as as part of the authority's strategy to continue regeneration on the waterfront.

'Success story'

The council estimate that the riverside area, which regularly hosts large conferences and events, has generated a £1.6bn economic impact for the city since its creation in 2008.

And the city's mayor has described the area's transformation as one of the council's "great success stories".

Joe Anderson said the waterfront "demands a world class offer and we have a masterplan to ensure that continues to happen at Kings Dock".

He added: "This transaction for £1 ensures the future direction of the site and our intention is to market the sites as soon as possible by seeking expressions of interest this autumn."

The council claims the next phase of development at Kings Dock will be "more transformational than what we have already achieved".

The report recommending the purchase also said it would help the council gain more control of development on the dock.

Cabinet members will decide whether to approve the purchase at a meeting on Friday.