LAST week’s announcement by the Liverpool Culture Company that the city’s annual Mathew Street festival was cancelled remains a matter of the utmost concern.

The festival has a big impact on the local economy and businesses. Hotels can charge top room rates and are booked up years in advance and the city’s bars and restaurants have their biggest nights of the year, with takings over the weekend even higher than in the run up to Christmas.

The cancellation, only three weeks before the festival weekend, was a classic case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing.

The Culture Company acts on behalf of, and reports to, Liverpool City Council, yet the council’s leadership was caught off its guard by the announcement. Council leader Warren Bradley insisted he had been told nothing about health and safety concerns threatening the event and had gone away on his hols blissfully unaware of the storm that was brewing.

This raises the question about lines of communication between council politicians and officers and between the council and the Culture Company. How well does our political leadership understand what is being done in our name?

When added to Liverpool’s long history of botched projects, including recently losing Everton to Knowsley and the mishandled domiciliary care cuts, it gives the impression that the City Council is badly managed compared to other local authorities.

When I talk to the council’s political leadership about a variety of issues, I often get the impression that the politicians want one thing, but the officials who are meant to implement policy are a law to themselves and they want something else.

Last week’s events represent an eloquent argument for fundamental reform of local government and provide first grade ammunition to those, like Liam Fogarty, who are campaigning for a mayor for Liverpool.

At the very least what this city needs is a full time political leadership in charge of the major departments, such as regeneration, environment, education and social care.

Fortunately, I don’t think the damage from the cancellation of the outdoor performances is as bad as people first feared. While I have not been to the festival for a couple of years, my recall is that the outdoor entertainment was mostly awful. It could even be it will be a better weekend without it.

THE voting has started about whether Everton should move to Kirkby. Surely only one outcome is possible.

Its a mystery to me why there is a no vote campaign at all. This is a no brainer.

While I understand the attachment some people feel about Goodison Park, the offer by Tesco to foot the lion’s share of the bill for constructing a new stadium at Kirkby is not going to be beaten.

Liverpool City Council may make suggestions about alternative locations to keep Everton in the city, but that’s not the point.

What matters is not the location, but the money. A lack of money is the one thing that scuppered Everton’s previous dreams of moving to the Kings Dock back in 2002.

It is nothing short of miraculous that Everton have lined up the Tesco deal. Those opposed to it because it involves a move a couple of miles across a local authority boundary are thinking far too parochially. They need to wake up to financial reality.

If Everton don’t accept Knowsley Council’s offer of the Kirkby site, there will be no new stadium for years, possibly decades, ahead.

Any failure to grab this opportunity could cost the club dearly in terms of revenue and league position.