Cabinet in Liverpool for meeting

Mr Brown met Rolls-Royce apprentices in Derby at the start of the trip

The entire cabinet is in Liverpool for its third meeting to be held outside London since September.

The visit comes during Prime Minister Gordon Brown's three-day regional tour to see how the country is coping with the economic downturn.

Urban regeneration and capital spending programmes will be major themes when ministers gather in the North West.

The idea of holding cabinet meetings outside of London has been criticised by the Conservatives as a "gimmick".

'Future investment'

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson will announce a