NEW government figures released today demonstrate how Liverpool's economy is continuing to go from strength to strength with the Liberal Democrats.

The Gross Value Added data, a measure of wealth of the economy for the population, shows Liverpool's economy grew by 6.2% between 2002 and 2003.

The gross value per head in Liverpool in 2003 was £14,619 compared with the 2002 figure of £13,771 . This is 2.5% above the North West (£13,586) level but below the UK level of £16,485.

The overall wealth of the city grew to £6.459 billion - an increase of £377million on the previous year.

Liverpool's economy has grown significantly since 1995 by just over £2.2 billion - an increase of 51.9%. The city has been growing at an annual rate of 4.75% per annum over the period 1995-2003 - above the North West rate of 4.24% and just under the UK rate of 4.88%

Lib Dem Councillor Peter Millea, Executive Member for Regeneration said: "These figures are proof of the dramatic turnaround we have seen in Liverpool's economic performance in the last few years.

"The city's economy is performing extremely well compared with neighbouring economies in the North West and both regional and national performance.

"Liverpool is not only closing the gap on the rest of the country but is outperforming many areas."