December 12, 2023
Government brings forward plans to relocate 22,000 jobs away from London
The UK Government is bringing forward its target to relocate 22,000 civil service roles out of London. It comes as new figures today show that 16,061 roles have already been moved out of London, exceeding the commitment to relocate 15,000 roles by 2025 as part of the Places for Growth programme. Under the newly announced plans, Aberdeen, Darlington and Greater Manchester are to host second headquarters for major departments. Darlington is already the Treasury’s second headquarters.
The move, announced today, also comes as it is confirmed that Wrexham will benefit from 300 extra roles. The Government says that its Places for Growth programme is helping grow the economy across the whole UK, with estimates showing that £30 million in economic benefits are generated per 1,000 roles relocated, due to increased footfall and spending from staff.
Minister for the Cabinet Office John Glen said:Â “We are taking the long term decisions to move government roles out of London so more people from our great towns and cities can play a direct role in changing this country for the better. We have already gone above and beyond our targets, bringing the best talent from every corner of the UK into government roles, to make our civil service more efficient and representative of the wider public.”
The announcements today include new second headquarters for the Department of Business and Trade in Darlington, and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology in Greater Manchester. To further strengthen the Union and place key decision making roles in every corner of the UK, Aberdeen has been chosen as the location of a second headquarters of the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero, in addition to Salford.
Previously, under the Government’s Aberdeen City Regional Deal, it was agreed that £90 million of funding would be directed toward the city’s Net Zero Technology Centre, which is working to help decarbonise the oil and gas industry.
In addition, The Department for Work and Pensions is committed to recruitment to fill 270 new roles which will be based in Wrexham, as well the Ministry of Justice who have committed to place 50 roles in Wrexham rather than London.
