Liverpool Cruise Terminal: Council to pull out of running berth

Last year the cruise terminal welcomed 150 vessels to the city

A council, which has owned and run one of the UK's busiest cruise liner terminals for the last fifteen years, is searching for a new operator.

Liverpool City Council said it planned to surrender the Liverpool Cruise Terminal lease due to "financial pressures and a shift in focus".

In 2007, when it took over, only three vessels stopped there. Some 150 ships berthed there in 2022.

Councillor Harry Doyle said there was "genuine interest" from third parties.

The council abandoned plans to build a new terminal on the waterfront last year, after forecast costs spiralled.

A report being considered by a council committee next week states the terminal was always intended to be taken over by a third party but the council ended up running the berth itself.

Mr Doyle said: "It is an attractive offer, global players know its worth.

"The interest is definitely there and I wouldn't feel comfortable as a politician surrendering our lease if the interest wasn't there".

The authority claims the cruise ships bring a £6m annual economic boost to the city.

A cabinet report due later this year will recommend the council surrender its lease to port authority The Mersey Docks and Harbour Company, and then negotiations with a third party operator could proceed.