Jane Kennedy, MP

CHILDREN'S Minister Bev Hughes has demanded that Liverpool city council explain why thousands of calls to its Careline service have gone unanswered.

It's feared that children could have been put at risk of abuse by Liverpool Direct turning a deaf ear to their plight.

Officials have already admitted that they agreed that one in every five calls would not be answered by staff at LDL, which has a multi-million pound contract with BT to provide the service for the city council.

Wavertree Labour MP Jane Kennedy wrote to Bev Hughes, the Children's Minister, after it emerged that 21.000 calls to Careline had not been answered.

Now Ms Hughes (right) has asked the Government Office in the North West to hold the city council to account for the failures.

She told Jane Kennedy: "I am grateful that you have brought this issue to my attention.

"I, like you, am alarmed by the apparent high level of abandoned calls. I am worried that callers wishing to report their concerns about the safety or welfare of a child may be unable to do so.

"I have asked immediately that officials from the Government Office North West urgently seek an explanation from Liverpool City Council and provide me the assurance that anyone with concerns about the safety of a child is able, easily, to report their concerns to the local authority children's social care and that calls will be answered in a timely way."

Jane Kennedy added: "I am relieved that the Government is taking this repeated failure to answer calls extremely seriously.

"I want the city council to conduct a proper and thorough investigation into what went wrong and how it can be prevented from happening again in the future.

"Children are being put at risk by Liverpool Direct's failure to deliver a proper service to the people oif Liverpool. To add insult to injury, this service which is costing council taxpayers a fortune."