Comment: Speed crucial in Everton decision

Apr 22 2008 Liverpool Daily Post

NEWS that the Government is expected to call in Everton FC and Tesco’s plans for Kirkby for further scrutiny will no doubt provoke mixed emotions among fans.

The £400m scheme goes before planners later this year and, if approved, is likely to be “called in” by the local government minister Hazel Blears, according to a senior source.

Such a move would prompt a public inquiry into the scheme, in which both sides of the debate could state their views.

Fans who feel the club is betraying its heritage and supporters by considering a move to Knowsley would be enraged if ministers allowed the controversial scheme to be handled solely by local planners.

And those who believe a move over the boundary and a partnership with Tesco is a way for the People’s Club to grow and prosper hope the plan can be agreed without the need for Whitehall’s involvement.

It is unlikely these two opposing sides will ever reach a consensus; supporting a football club is all about passion, and Everton FC’s proposed move has provoked strong emotions and opinions on both sides. No one, it seems, is neutral in this debate.

So perhaps we should welcome news that this scheme is almost certain to be subjected to government scrutiny – with one caveat. For a public inquiry, overseen by a planning inspector, could be to delay the scheme by up to a year. It could also drive up the costs until it was no longer viable to proceed.

Everton FC chief Keith Wyness has famously warned: “There is no Plan B”; Tesco has committed to the scheme by this week announcing it has bought a swathe of Kirkby town centre from Development Securities – effectively halting rival plans for the site.

This is a scheme which should succeed or fail on its merits, not because it was killed off by government red tape or drawn-out bureaucracy. This is one contest that must not be allowed to run into extra time.