Chapman Taylor’s proposed £5.5 billion regeneration of the Liverpool Docks has been criticised by Cabe for being “generic” and “not organised or expressed in a meaningful way”.

In its report the quango said 1.3 million sq m project, known as Liverpool Waters, “does not provide confidence that a high quality scheme will emerge”.

It added that the outline planning application, which has been submitted to Liverpool City Council, did not give enough feel of “how richness across neighbourhoods will be secured in relation to the overall masterplan”.

The project, for Peel Holdings, has already been criticised by English Heritage over the height of some buildings and the possible impact of the scheme on the city’s World Heritage Site status.

Following EH’s assessment, the centrepiece Shanghai Tower was scaled down from 65 to 55 storeys.

Cabe also called for an independent design review process to be adopted as a condition of the planning consent.