LIVERPOOL is now just a week away from hosting a meeting of the British Cabinet for the first time in the city’s history.

The cabinet “tour” which has already been to Birmingham and Leeds is part of Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s attempt to “engage” with people outside the Westminster bubble.

It will be only the third time since 1921 that a Prime Minister has called a cabinet meeting outside London or Chequers.

Ministers are expected to disperse across the region to visit schools and businesses in an effort to shore up support in Labour heartlands.

Deputy leader of Liverpool’s Liberal Democrat council, Cllr Flo Clucas, said she hoped the Government would see the huge amount of progress the city had made, and the difference “having a Lib-Dem administration has made”.

The meeting will be held on Thursday, January 8, but the venue is yet to be announced for security reasons.

After the expected 90-minute cabinet session, ministers will then visit several projects.

Culture secretary Andy Burnham is likely to conduct a 2008 debrief with Culture Company officials.

It is hoped business secretary Peter Mandelson will meet with representatives from Jaguar Land Rover and Vauxhall which are currently seeking government support to see them through the credit crunch.

Health and education ministers will be expected to tour hospitals and schools, while justice secretary Jack Straw may visit local courts.

Liverpool city historian Steve Binns, said: “This certainly is the first cabinet meeting in Liverpool.

“Cabinets have met in people’s private houses on many occasions, often when people were ill.”

He said that was true for four- times Prime Minister William Gladstone, from Liverpool, who convened the cabinet at his Edinburgh home.

The 1921 meeting of the cabinet was convened by Liberal Prime Minister David Lloyd George at his holiday location in Wester Ross to discuss the Irish conflict as a matter of urgency.

Last night, Cllr Clucas said: “It’s always good when politicians get out of the Westminster village to see what life outside is really like.”

“I do hope they will take the opportunity to look at the good that has been done and how much the European Union has helped. From our perspective, having a Lib-Dem administration has made the difference.”

She said she hoped the Government would use the visit to explain how it was planning to help cities like Liverpool through the recession.

Cllr Clucas, who also oversees financial and European matters, said Liverpool, aided by EU cash, was an example of what could be achieved through partnership working, once liberated from the “heavy hand” of Westminster.

Last night, a Downing Street spokesman said: “We are not confirming anything. If there were an announcement like that, we would make it nearer the time.”

davidbartlett