A multi-million pound scheme for an International Trade Centre to be built in Wirral docklands will be presented to council planners tomorrow.

The Peel Group will be submitting its outline planning application for the ITC scheme - which could create upwards of 3,000 jobs.

A statement from Peel says the development at West Float Docks, will "be unique in the UK and will bring substantial international investment to an area in need of major regeneration."

It believed the centre "has the potential to create over 3,000 new jobs many of which will be available to local people."

Peel director Lindsey Ashworth said: “This is a fantastic and exciting project where everybody wins.

"All local retailers will have access on their doorstep to high quality products manufactured overseas, and local people will have the opportunity to apply for new jobs that will be created.

"Peel will establish stronger business relationships with China and other emerging economies which we believe will be the start of additional overseas joint ventures that move other projects forward and kick-start much needed growth in the Northwest region”.

Council leader Cllr Steve Foulkes said: “While the International Trade Centre application will be independently decided by the council’s planning committee, it is fantastic to see the Wirral Waters vision, as launched by Peel in 2006 becoming a reality.

"The Trade Centre will be the cornerstone of what is a landscape-transforming development not just for Wirral but the Liverpool City Region as a whole.

"It is hopefully the first of many exciting ventures to be based at the site and has come to fruition because of the close international links that have been forged with China by both Peel and Wirral Council."

He concluded: "This project has the potential to deliver much-needed investment and jobs for local people and I am personally determined that this is just the beginning of a new dawn for Birkenhead and Wirral."

The Trade Centre application, which is submitted in outline, will comprise of four separate multi-level buildings totalling around 2.5m square feet of floor space.

The four buildings are likely to be phased over the next ten years and it is expected that first-phase building construction will start as early as next year.

The centre will enable more than 1,000 companies from countries such as China, India, South Korea and other emerging economies, to exhibit, sell, assemble and distribute goods into the UK, Irish and European markets.

Peel says the facility will be the first of its kind in the UK and the largest and most sustainable wholesale Trade Centre in Europe.

The company says it "anticipates that planning permission will be granted" by autumn of this year.

In April, the Government announced Wirral Waters would be one of the region's first "Enterprise Zones" which are designed to encourage investment with tax breaks and superfast internet streams.