Data journalism tells devastating story of austerity in Liverpool

Journalists at the Liverpool Echo have painted a vivid picture of the impact of 14 years of austerity on the city.

Liverpool: Austerity City has been produced by journalists at the Liverpool Echo and publisher Reach, including political editor Liam Thorp at the Echo, Reach data journalists Annie Gouk and Marianna Longo, and interactive editor Adam Walker.

It uses data journalism and immersive storytelling to set out the impact of 14 years of funding cuts to local services such as councils.

Austerity was a policy ushered in by the Conservatives in 2010 under then prime minister David Cameron and chancellor George Osborne, the latter of who also championed investment in the North at the same time.

Councils have increasingly had to rely on cash raised from council taxes, rather than government grants, to make ends meet. Austerity City explains the impact this approach has had in Liverpool — a city which has many more houses in the lower council tax bands than elsewhere in England.

Liverpool Echo political editor Liam Thorp said: “We are very proud of the work that has gone into creating Liverpool: Austerity City. It is a tough read, but we think it is a very important one.

“This project has been a huge team effort across the ECHO and Reach’s data and visualisation teams and hopefully has created a really powerful product. We have worked collaboratively for months on this.

“We wanted to show the impact that 14 years of austerity has had on the city of Liverpool through hard numbers, engaging charts and real life stories — all put together in a stunning and immensely readable format.

“Huge credit goes to my colleagues Annie Gouk, Adam Walker and Marianna Longo for their work creating this product. We hope it serves as a timely reminder of what has gone wrong under previous governments — and what an incoming administration must address.”

Liverpool Echo editor Maria Breslin said: “We are proud to publish such a powerful piece of work which perfectly illustrates the heartbreaking impact of austerity on cities such as Liverpool. It is the sort of content our audience expects and deserves.

“Though sobering and stark, it is excellent, data-driven journalism which clearly shows how political decision-making can punish cities such as ours and the heart-breaking consequences for those people whose lives are changed forever by those choices.

“We report on the ramifications of austerity on an almost daily basis but Liam and colleagues from across the wider Reach business have created an impactful report that categorically shows how Liverpool has suffered.”