The Merseyside Development Corporation was a central government-appointed Development Corporation set up in 1981 by Margaret Thatcher's government to regenerate the Mersey docks of Liverpool, Bootle, Wallasey and Birkenhead.

The corporation was established as part of an initiative by the future Deputy Prime Minister, Michael Heseltine, in 1981 during the First Thatcher ministry.

[1] Board members were directly appointed by the minister and overrode local authority planning controls to spend government money on infrastructure.

Circa 944 acres (3.82 km2) of derelict land was reclaimed and 60 miles (97 km) of new road and footpaths put in place.

[6] The chairman was Donald Forster, who had previously been Chairman of Warrington and Runcorn Development Corporation,[7] and the first Chief Executive was Basil Bean, who had previously been general manager of the Northampton Development Corporation.