Damien Moore MP praises Southport Flower Show success

SOUTHPORT MP Damien Moore has praised the team behind Southport Flower Show for their work in organising the highly anticipated event, the 1st in the 2 years since the Pandemic began.

The historic flower show, which is fast approaching its 100th anniversary, is the largest independent flower show in the country. It is held at Victoria Gardens in Southport's Town Centre, and was opened this year by Dr Karen Groves MBE, who founded Queenscourt Hospice 31 years ago.

The Southport Flower Show attracts thousands of visitors into Southport, alongside hundreds of traders and exhibitors.

Mr. Moore was invited to celebrate the welcome ceremony of the show, which included a light hearted appearance from BBC presenter Adam Frost and a moving speech from Dr. Groves, before spending the day speaking with the visitors and exhibitors.

Mr. Moore praised the organisers of the event for all their work over the past few years and for making this year's flower show possible.

Damien Moore, MP for Southport, said:- "The Southport Flower Show is 1 of the premier events in our Town's calendar, with visitors and exhibitors coming not only from Southpor,t but from all around the UK. I was delighted to attend the opening day ceremony and see this year's long awaited show launched. I'm especially pleased that Dr. Karen Groves was nominated to open the show, considering the massive contribution she has made to Southport and the surrounding areas through Queenscourt Hospice. There is something for everyone at Southport Flower Show. We are privileged to live in a Town that is home to such a fantastic event, which is only possible due to the work of the show's General Manager, Alan Adams, his dedicated team, and the members of the show's board. As the MP for a seaside resort, I can think of nothing better than seeing our Town packed to the brim with those coming to Southport and having a fantastic time, especially considering how difficult the past few years have been. I hope that all those in attendance had a fantastic time!"

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PASSENGERS are now benefiting from a new lift at Birkenhead Park rail station, on Merseyrail's Wirral line, which provides a step free route from the street to the platforms.

With its official opening held on 26 August, the 16 capacity lift makes it easier to reach the platforms for wheelchair users, people with mobility needs, heavy luggage or those with children in buggies.

Local people who had campaigned for the new lift were joined by Cllr Liam Robinson, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Transport Portfolio Holder, and Jane English, Deputy Managing Director of Merseyrail, for the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Completion of the works brings the total number of step free stations in the Liverpool City Region to 58, out of a total of 83.

It's been made possible through funding from the Department for Transport's (DfT) Access for All programme and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority's Transforming Cities Fund, as part of a wider vision to make the local rail network the most accessible in the country.

As part of this round of investment, Merseyrail passengers can also look forward to greater accessibility as new lifts will be up and running at Hillside, Hunts Cross and St Michael's stations during the next few months, while Northern passengers will benefit when Broadgreen has a new lift installed next year.

There are also plans for a second lift at Liverpool Central next year.

The upgrades align to the Metro Mayor's wider vision of building a London style transport system for the Region that is quick, simple, affordable, and accessible to all.

The Mahoney family have long campaigned for a lift at Birkenhead Park. Access issues at the station have meant that they have had to walk further to other stations to get son John, who is in a wheelchair, down to the platform.

Improving accessibility at stations will also complement the introduction of the City Region's new, state-of-the-art trains with pioneering sliding step technology, which are due to be phased into service from later this year.

Sue Mahoney said:- "This new lift will have a tremendously positive impact. We have been campaigning for this since we fostered John at the age of 3, and he's 30 years old this year. We are living right at the back of the station and John loves going to Liverpool to the theatre. We did struggle down the stairs for a few years; but it's become too much, and we have been walking down to the next station instead. Having a station we can use on our doorstep makes such a big difference; not only for us but for all the people who want to access the park. It's great for everybody."

Cllr Liam Robinson, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Transport Portfolio Holder said:- "Removing barriers to public transport are key in terms of us supporting independent travel. We want a rail network that works for everyone, and the new lift means that more people now have access to the rail network, making a huge difference to their daily lives. As this round of upgrades completes over the next few months, we're working on developing proposals for the next set of stations that would benefit from similar investment as we continue to strive to have the most accessible rail network in the country."

Andy Heath, Managing Director of Merseyrail, said:- "We are delighted to see the new lift at Birkenhead Park station open. This represents the latest part of our commitment to make Merseyrail the most accessible rail network in the UK. We know the benefit a lift at our stations brings to the communities we serve, allowing not just wheelchair users to travel independently, but also those customers who have mobility issue and those travelling with small children or luggage. This further improvement is the 1st of a number of new lifts which will open on our network between now and Christmas, complementing perfectly the roll out of our fully accessible fleet of new trains which will also begin to be rolled out later this year."