MERSEYSIDE will learn today whether it has been earmarked as a new home for some of the 20,000 civil servants set to move out of London.
The long-awaited Lyons review, to boost growth in the regions by relocating parts of government departments from the capital, will finally be published.
It will reveal whether civil service chiefs in the various departments and quangos believe Liverpool is a suitable new home, compared to other towns and cities.
And it will call on deputy prime minister John Prescott to work closely with regional development agencies, to identify where the jobs can best be relocated.
But at a recent development conference in France, Mr Prescott told the Daily Post that Liverpool was one of many cities bidding for a slice of the same pie.
He said: "We do want to see more transporting of jobs. Everybody has bids in, especially from the North.
"If we granted all the current bids we would be picking up and moving all of London. Liverpool will have to bid like everybody else."
The review will conclude that moving 20,000 jobs will save £2bn in wages and the sale of properties over 15 years, despite start-up costs and compensation payments.
New units of government departments will be set up in the regions, employing local workers, as old offices in London are wound down and vacancies are unfilled.
Sir Michael Lyons, the review's author, will propose that departments should be given financial incentives to move, but penalties should be imposed if they fail to cut costs.
Every department has drawn up plans to relocate staff, but the Treasury, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Ministry of Defence are expected to move the most.
Civil servants should be paid less outside London, in line with local wage rates, to avoid hindering private sector investment, Sir Michael will say.
In January, an analysis for the government by property consultants King Sturge concluded that Liverpool was one of the top locations in the country for the civil servant jobs.
The city was recommended for five out of six categories of public sector employment, including the most highly-prized and highly-paid jobs, those in policy-making and science.
The study also picked out Warrington for the top jobs. Wirral was recommended for clerical staff and call centre jobs. Knowsley and Chester, however, were overlooked.
In an interview last week, Sir Michael said up to 60,000 civil servants, three times as many as expected, could be moved out of London over the next 20 years.
He said: "We need a wholesale change in attitude."
