Labour’s latest Civil Service overhaul will see thousands of public sector jobs created in the regions, while Whitehall buildings are set to close.
In total, 13 hubs have been announce for government roles in towns and cities outside the UK capital. Senior and police positions will be included, alongside behind-the-scenes technology staff.
One of Labour’s priorities is have frontline staff to work closer with senior management, improving understandings of challenges and issues facing service users and those delivering services to the public. Over time, this will help inform central government policy.
The news follows a major spending review which identified inefficiencies in the current centralised Civil Service model. Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Pat McFadden, has since instructed all departments to prepare for significant relocation of jobs. Greater Manchester and Aberdeen stand to gain the most.
Manchester, now the fastest growing city in the UK at 2.7% year-on-year, outpacing London in current and projected economic success, is already home to second headquarters for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), and has a large GCHQ base. It will now also be home to the new Government Digital and AI Innovation Campus and Energy Campus, with a planned building in the Ancoats district alone set to host 7,000 civil servants.
‘The selection of Greater Manchester for the Digital and AI Innovation Campus confirms our importance in the UK’s tech landscape and validates our position as the UK’s most AI-ready city,’ said Joe Manning, Managing Director at MIDAS, Manchester’s Inward Investment Agency.
‘This investment will strengthen our standing as a prime destination for digital talent, creating opportunities for professionals across our city-region while harnessing our existing pool of skilled talent,’ they continued. ‘Our thriving tech ecosystem will drive national digital transformation while accelerating our city-region’s economic growth momentum.’
GB Energy, the government’s new nationalised energy service, is set to be based in Aberdeen, widely considered Britain’s energy capital and the second home of the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). The city will also host a second Government Digital and AI Innovation Campus and Energy Campus. Elsewhere, Birmingham, Leeds, Cardiff, Glasgow, Darlington, Newcastle and Tyneside, Sheffield, Bristol, Edinburgh, Belfast and York will also become Civil Service hubs, with the total relocation programme estimated to be worth £729m in local economic benefits over the six years to 2030.
‘To deliver our Plan for Change, we are taking more decision-making out of Whitehall and moving it closer to communities all across the UK,’ said Chancellor McFadden. ‘By relocating thousands of Civil Service roles we will not only save taxpayers money, we will make this Government one that better reflects the country it serves. We will also be making sure that Government jobs support economic growth throughout the country. As we radically reform the state, we are going to make it much easier for talented people everywhere to join the Civil Service and help us rebuild Britain.’
Image: Zach Rowlandson / Unsplash
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