Wirral Council has been urged to extend the suspension of parking charges to the borough's struggling retail areas, following news that charges in the four country parks have been stopped as part of the town hall's response to the Covid-19 outbreak.

Councillor Ian Lewis said: "I think most people would recognise that these are unprecedented times for all of us, not least retailers struggling to make ends meet.

"The town hall has done the right thing in suspending parking charges in our country parks as we need to ensure that nobody is priced out of the few remaining safe leisure opportunities.

"But we also need to play our part for local shops and retailers. While the government has confirmed that business rates are being suspended for most retailers and grants of up to £10,000 are being arranged, we must encourage more people to shop locally.

"Councillors of all parties are doing what we can to support local communities at this time and I'm sure that the suspension of parking charges in Liscard and all our other retail areas will be a massive help.

"I'd hope that we can see an announcement on this within the next week and encourage all residents to use their local shops."