Maybe in a practical sense, but not in a legal-ese planning-type way. The permission would always stand, it's just a matter of paying for it. The planning permission included a package of regeneration around Anfield, at a cost of some £35m - £40m. It just so happens that Merseyside (which is in an Objective 1 area, shortly to finish) can apply for funds from the EU for such projects. These projects need to be part-funded by the private sector, and the council (rightly) saw LFC's application as a way fo getting these improvements done. Without the application, there would be no regeneration package, which we know is badly needed. The club holds the cards. The NWDA (who administer the O1 funds) know this, the council know this. If Liverpool decide to stay put, the regeneration will be lost and everyone will look stupid. Incidentally, I wouldn't be surprised to see the council start to press for a start on site reasonably soon. One of the new changes to planning legislation is that permissions are valid for 3 years, not 5. Whilst LFC fell into the "5 year" category, planning authorities are being pressed to make current consents into reality. It's all to stop speculative developments. Also, at a higher level. New Anfield is at one end of Prescott's Northern Way - his flagship project. With his demise (no doubt we'll argue about that until the cows come home ) he will be keen to see these projects underway before he is booted out. If Tim is right about the office application, we could see a start on site in 6 months or so? That's just guess work though.
