Hundreds of homes in Liverpool are to be demolished after the Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott upheld the findings of a public inquiry.

The houses will be knocked down as part of a road widening and regeneration scheme on Edge Lane.

Mr Prescott confirmed a public inquiry decision that developers can secure the land with compulsory purchase orders.



Liverpool Land Development Company plans to spend £300m on the scheme which will see 400 homes flattened.

Edge Lane links the M62 with the city centre but it is often congested in the Kensington area.

The public inquiry was called following residents' objections when the compulsory purchase orders were issued in January 2005.

The developers claimed the scheme would improve traffic flow and regenerate the area, but residents argued it would just create a motorway into Liverpool and destroy historic Victorian houses.

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