Liverpool’s £160 Central Village project has been put on hold after the building firm overseeing the final phase of the project is set to go into liquidation.

The Village, in the heart of the city, comprises a 6-screen Odeon cinema, 442 hotel rooms by Millennium & Copthorne and Accor Hotels and160,000sq ft (14,864sq m) of retail and leisure space.

However, Merepark Construction, an offshoot of main developer Merepark, which was delivering the final phase is to go into liquidation. The firm secured the £26m contract after it completed the interior strip out of the site.

Due to the increasing scope of works, the scheme was running 15 per cent over budget when the project funder decided to cease payments to Merepark Construction’s subcontractors and suppliers, despite the project being 85 per cent complete.

Control of the scheme has now changed hands, forcing the company to seek advice from insovency experts Begbies Traynor on going into voluntary liquidation.

Paul Barber, partner at Begbies Traynor, said: “Following the bank’s decision to take control of this part of the Central Village scheme,, the directors of Merepark Construction were left with no alternative than to seek advice as to the process of entering into creditors’ voluntary liquidation.

“All 10 of the company’s staff were made redundant with immediate effect and were informed of the decision this afternoon.”