Since 2017, we have worked really hard to engage with our Metro Mayor, Steve Rotheram, who is the figurehead representing the interests of the Local Authorities which make up the Liverpool City Region.

This obviously includes Sefton Council.

Whilst stopping short of expressly opposing the Port of Liverpool Access Road, he has repeatedly supported the stance of the Council and both MPs, who do oppose these plans and he has demanded that better alternatives be put forward. These efforts include this letter to former Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps in 2022.

In recent years, Metro Mayors have sought – and gained – increasing powers and funding for a wide range of areas, including transport.

Steve Rotheram works closely with his counterpart for Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, other Mayors across the North and the West Midlands and the Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh.

We have witnessed first hand their shared vision for unlocking the potential good transport decisions have to break down barriers, reinvigorate the economy and to be a force for good in society. This includes investing in public transport and active travel. Getting freight off our roads and onto rail is another shared priority.

Just 2 weeks ago, our Metro Mayor welcomed the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves to the Liverpool City Region to discuss how it can play a crucial role in achieving the government’s national missions.

We know that one of these missions is to fill the £22bn+ ‘black hole’ left by the previous government.

This means that it is a combination of the Transport Secretary and the Chancellor who will ultimately decide whether or not to continue to fund the Port of Liverpool Access Road in this autumn’s budget. It is therefore vital that Steve Rotheram reflects the views of Sefton Council, our MPs and members of the public in conversations on this topic.

On the back of last week’s call to email our MPs, we need you to ask for our Metro Mayor’s support to ensure that this issue is on the new government’s radar and that every effort is being made to cancel the road proposal.

If you live in any borough of the Liverpool City Region, you can play YOUR part by completing this simple action.

Please write to (email) your Metro Mayor by following these simple instructions:

1. Begin your email with your full name & full home address (not just your post code)
2. Copy & paste the template below
3. Change or add to it to include anything specific you may wish to say about the threat to Rimrose Valley and the use of public money on such a destructive project
4. Add your name at the end
5. Click send!
6. Encourage others to do the same

To: mayor@liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk
Subject: Opposition to the Port of Liverpool Access Road

Dear Steve Rotheram / Metro Mayor

I am writing to you as a citizen of the Liverpool City Region to ask for your urgent support in opposing the A5036 Port of Liverpool Access Road.

I would like to thank you for holding the previous Conservative government to account by writing to the former Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, and through the public statements you have issued on this subject over the years via the Save Rimrose Valley campaign.

With Labour now in power, the current government review of transport infrastructure projects, and with public finances in a dire state, there is a real opportunity to get the scheme cancelled. However, time is short.

I am asking you to use your influence and close ties with both Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh and Chancellor, Rachel Reeves to:

• Formally reinforce and endorse the positions of LCRCA member Sefton Council, Peter Dowd MP (Bootle) and Bill Esterson MP (Sefton Central), by calling for the road to be cancelled as part of the current transport infrastructure review, by writing to both the Transport Secretary and Chancellor on this matter and raising it in any meetings with them
• Call for access to the Port of Liverpool to be revisited in its entirety with the LCRCA’s transport team at the heart of this process, so that such major decisions are made locally, not in Whitehall
• Invite key decision makers to visit Rimrose Valley and the surrounding area (such as during this year’s Party Conference)

Thank you for your ongoing support.

Yours sincerely