Fresh images from Liverpool FC’s Premier League parade have raised serious questions about how the event was managed, particularly the safety of fans lining the streets. Nearly 80 people were injured after a car was driven into crowds on Water Street on Monday, May 26. Victims included children as young as nine and a 78-year-old.
In the days since the crash, concerns have been growing over how the parade, which drew an estimated one million people, was planned, especially around traffic and crowd control. Photos shared with the Liverpool Echo show large vehicles, including lorries and coaches, moving along Queens Drive just 20 minutes before the team bus arrived. Children and adults can clearly be seen in the road as traffic passes through.
A father who attended the parade with his five-year-old son said: “Looking at it now after what had happened, how on earth is a lorry allowed to drive through hundreds of people lined on both sides of the road?”
He isn’t the only one raising concerns. A former Merseyside Police officer also questioned the set-up after joining the crowd near the Jolly Miller pub.
He told the Liverpool Echo: “As soon as we got to the Jolly Miller I could see that they had closed the inbound carriageway, where the parade bus would come through, but they hadn’t closed the other side.
“This meant that lots of vehicles, including dozens of Heavy Goods Vehicles, were trying to get along the road among loads of people, who were basically penned in because of how big the crowds were.
“There were lots of us asking what was going on, why were these vehicles being allowed through when there were so many people in the road?
“It instilled a bit of fear and anxiety. I couldn’t believe they were still allowing traffic through that area.”
Liverpool Community Independents leader Cllr Alan Gibbons has now submitted a formal Right to Know request to Liverpool City Council asking for answers.
In an email to the council’s chief executive, he wrote: “It is important to know whether sufficient measures were undertaken to protect the public.
“Based on footage circulating on social media and mainstream news outlets, a number of critical questions arise surrounding the circumstances of the incident, the preparedness of the authorities, and the overall safeguarding of the public.”
He also asked: “Why does footage appear to show no visible police presence in the vicinity at the time of the vehicle entering the area?
“What was the contingency plan in the event of a vehicle breach, and how was it communicated to officers and stewards on duty?”
Liberal Democrat leader Cllr Carl Cashman has called for a judge-led inquiry into the incident.
He said: “The composition of the inquiry should be determined at the meeting but I will be suggesting that it is Judge led to ensure impartiality.”
Merseyside Police’s Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims said: “In the lead up to this event we have been working closely with event organisers and a robust traffic management plan was put in place for the parade which included a number of road closures throughout the route and the city centre.”
Liverpool City Council has not released an official statement but said officers would respond to elected members in due course.
On Friday, 53-year-old Paul Doyle appeared in court charged in connection with the crash. He was remanded in custody ahead of a plea hearing on August 14.
