SOUTHAMPTON was last night accused of “hypocrisy” for standing in the way of Liverpool’s cruise terminal ambitions despite receiving £54m of public money to upgrade access to its own port.

The two cities have clashed over Liverpool’s bid to use its Pier Head cruise terminal for “turnarounds”, allowing ships to start and finish their journeys.

Southampton believes the change would amount to unfair use of state aid.

But earlier this year, a £60m rail freight link into the Port of Southampton was opened – with £54m coming from the taxpayer.

Walton MP Steve Rotheram said: “It smacks of hypocrisy and I think it is outrageous that they are objecting to Liverpool’s plans.

“If they genuinely believe in market forces, why don’t they allow Liverpool to have cruise liner facilities and then people can chose which one they prefer?”

Mr Rotheram said Southampton’s cruise terminal was based at a “not particularly inviting” dock.

He added: “The other option would be departing from a world-famous waterfront and there is no comparison. It is about the customer experience, not just geographical location.”

Southampton is demanding the repayment of all £17.8m of Government and European grants used to fund Liverpool’s terminal, claiming the cash should not be used for private enterprise. A 10-week Department for Transport consultation, which closes on September 15, is considering Liverpool’s offer to pay back £5.3m of the public cash.

Southampton’s £60m upgraded freight rail link opened in April to allow supersized containers to be transported between Southampton and the Midlands.