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Liverpool City Council's decision to cancel this year's Summer Pops concerts is nothing short of a disgrace.
Just as the city celebrates its 800th birthday, and gears up for the greatest celebration it has enjoyed in generations, the authorities once again shoot themselves in the foot.
For more than 18 months now, the council has had at least one very serious, and very realistic, offer from the private sector to run these concerts.
If the Pops have any chance of surviving, and being a viable concern, they need professional
management - not just from the private businesses tasked with running them, but also the public sector paymasters.
Even at this late stage, I would ask the council to reconsider its decision.
As was pointed out, for every £1 of public subsidy, £6 comes into the local economy for a spectacle that has become one of the more high profile annual events in the Liverpool calendar.
As it is, and having spent £3m of public funds on them already, the whole future of the event is in question - not just for 2007, but for 2008 and beyond.
what message does this send out to other serious private sector businesses hoping to invest in the city during - and beyond - its time in the spotlight?
This is not just about about disappointing thousands of music fans. By behaving in this way, the council is risking the reputation of the city as a place to do business.
We can only hope that is not the real price that the people of Liverpool have to pay for the shambles around the Summer Pops.
Notes to editors
For more information, or to arrange an interview with Frank McKenna, please call Chris Marritt at Mason Media on 0151 707 4514 or 07908 214950.
