Offices to be closed as thousands of civil servant jobs shift out of London by 2030

Major Whitehall government buildings are to be shut by ministers as they seek to shed 12,000 civil servant jobs in London, while moving thousands of roles to cities across the UK.

- Rowena Mason

Pat McFadden, the Cabinet Office minister, said he would set a target of 50% of all senior civil servants being based outside of London within five years, with the aim of policy being made closer to communities affected.

The Westminster offices of the Ministry of Justice at 102 Petty France and the Department of Health and Social Care at Victoria Street, as well as the Department for Work and Pensions at Caxton House, will be shut down along with eight other central London buildings, and their staff moved to other parts of the government estate.

It will take the number of full-time government staff working in Whitehall down from 95,000 to about 83,000, with savings on central London property of about £94m per year.

Civil service unions largely welcomed the shift of jobs outside London but the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union urged the government to ensure no compulsory redundancies would take place and guarantee fair terms and conditions for those who chose to relocate.