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Mike Storey Edit Profile

Deputy Leader Leader of Liverpool City Council

Mike Storey, Baron Storey Commander of the Order of the British Empire is a British Liberal Democrat politician.

Career

He is currently the party"s spokesperson on education, families and young people in the He was City Councillor for the Liverpool ward of Wavertree from 2004–2011 and Leader of Liverpool City Council from 1998-2005. However, he was first elected to the Council in 1973, and became the youngest Chair of Education in the history of Liverpool from 1980–1983, during which time he was also Deputy under Sir Trevor Jones. He aimed to set about rebuilding the city"s reputation, cutting the council tax, improving services and attracting jobs and investment, while reducing the number of council employees by 5,000.

He was a central part of Liverpool"s successful bid to become European Capital of Culture in 2008 and was widely credited with transforming the city and Council"s reputation by cutting council tax (until then the highest in the country), improving council services (previously the worst in England) and attracting jobs and investment.

He resigned as Council Leader on 25 November 2005 after being found to have breached the members" code of conduct, following the disclosure of correspondence with former Council media chief, Matt Finnegan, which appeared to show the two men seeking to pressure the departure of then Chief Executive, Sir David Henshaw. He lost his seat to 18-year-old Jake Morrison in 2011.

Storey served as of Liverpool for the Council session 2009-2010. He was preceded by Cllr Steve Rotherham and succeeded by Cllr Hazel Williams.

On 19 November 2010, it was announced that Storey would be created a life peer and will sit as a Liberal Democrat in the He was created Baron Storey, of Childwall in the City of Liverpool on 2 February 2011.

Storey is currently the Liberal Democrat education spokesman in the and co-chair (alongside Simon Wright Member of Parliament) of the party parliamentary education, families and young people committee. He speaks on education, regeneration and the arts

Achievements

  • Storey was awarded an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for political services in 1992 and a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to regeneration in 2002. He is a retired primary school teacher and long-serving headteacher of Plantation Primary School, Halewood.

Politics

In 1998 the Liberal Democrats gained control of Liverpool City Council and Storey became Council Leader.

Membership

He was a party whip between 2010-2014 and a member of the Small and Medium Sized Enterprises Committee in 2012-2013. Storey is also a member of the Regional Growth Fund independent advisory panel, a trustee of Mersyside think-tank, ExUrbe.