Following yesterdays ‘drug ring smashing’ by Merseyside Police, the Big Issue will no longer be sold on the streets of Liverpool. Liverpool City Council leader Mike Story has now banned the magazine, which supports homeless people, outright. In an interview with the Liverpool Echo he said, “As far as the city council is concerned the sale of the Big Issue is suspended until any court cases are out of the way and we are sure that big issue selling is properly managed and properly regulated. The Big Issue as an organisation have responsibility to ensure the people working for them are properly managed”

However Fay Selvan, chair of Big Issue in the North said: “We haven't had any indication from Liverpool City Council that they are taking legal action to prevent us selling Big Issues in Liverpool. If that was the case we would engage our lawyers immediately and fight it all the way”.

The city, in its attempts to gear up towards the City of culture 2008, the city council has wanted to get rid of all types of ‘undesirables’ from the city centre – whether stall holders, Big Issue sellers or political activists handing out leaflets. All have been the targets of the ‘clean up campaign’ codenamed ‘Sanitise’ – The affects of the latest arrests will mean people will not buy the Big Issue magazine from sellers because of the propaganda resulting from the arrests.

Liverpool City Council have spent large amounts of money on an advertising campaign which was aimed at stopping members of the public from giving money to homeless people.