Confidential government documents released today show that Margaret Thatcher was urged to abandon Liverpool to “managed decline” by her chancellor following the 1981 Toxteth riots.
The newly released National Archives files made available under the 30-year rule, reveal that while then Secretary of State for the Environment Michael Heseltine, was arguing to fund regeneration projects in the riot-stricken city, chancellor Sir Geoffrey Howe, thought it would be a waste of money.
With more than 70 buildings in the city either demolished or burnt down in the riots, he warned Thatcher “not to over commit scarce resources to Liverpool”.
“I cannot help feeling that the option of managed decline is one which we should not forget altogether. We must not expend all our limited resources in trying to make water flow uphill,” he said.
lucy.barnard@estatesgazette.com
