New figures show Labour Party Conference boosted Liverpool city centre economy by an estimated £20m and the event will return to ACC Liverpool in 2023. Tony McDonough reports
Not only was the Labour Party Conference in September a triumph for Sir Keir Starmer, it also boosted the city centre economy by £20m – and it will return in 2023.
On Thursday the Labour Part confirmed its conference will once again be staged at ACC Liverpool in the autumn of next year. This year’s event saw 12,500 delegates across the five days. This offered a much-needed boost to hotels, restaurants and bars.
It was held across the entire campus of the waterfront ACC Liverpool venue and was officially opened by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer. This was followed by days of plenary sessions, more than 350 fringe events, keynote speeches and networking opportunities.
Exhibition Centre Liverpool, part of ACC Liverpool, was transformed into a 2,200 seat auditorium for plenary sessions in addition to a 300-stand exhibition.
Fringe meetings took place in the convention centre, also part of ACC Liverpool, as well as at venues across the city. The venue’s interconnected hotel, Pullman Liverpool, operated as the headquarters hotel for the conference.
The pinnacle of the conference was Tuesday afternoon when Mr Starmer delivered his speech to a packed conference hall.
Faye Dyer, managing director of ACC Liverpool Group, said: “We were really pleased to welcome the Labour Party back to our venue for the fourth time, having last taken place in the city in 2018.
“A total of 12,500 delegates attended the event which created a fantastic buzz, not only on our campus but across the entire city.
“Through the hundreds of fringe events, the conference provided our local community with a platform to engage directly with Government leaders and MPs. We are really pleased that they have confirmed their return next year.”
Stakeholders across the city worked together to deliver this year’s successful conference. They included Marketing Liverpool, Liverpool Convention Bureau, Liverpool City Council and Merseyside Police.
Chris Brown, director of Marketing Liverpool, added: “The contribution of a large event of this scale on the region is hugely significant as reflected in the major economic impact it generates. In addition to the financial benefits, it enables us to showcase the entire city to a world audience.”
In addition to this year’s outing, the Labour Party conference has taken place at the venue in 2011, 2016 and 2018. David Evans, general secretary of the Labour Party, also said: “We would like to thank ACC Liverpool and the city of Liverpool for hosting this year’s Labour Party conference.
“It was an incredible conference which surpassed our expectations. We are delighted that the wonderful showcase that Liverpool provided us with led to over 10,000 people joining the Labour Party during and since.”