Civil service jobs to move to Scotland as part of UK Government shake-up

A shake-up of the civil service is to bring more jobs to Scotland, with Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen to benefit from the move.

It comes as the UK Government announced plans to shift more civil servant posts out of London to towns and cities across the UK.

Thousands of roles are expected to be moved to 13 different towns and cities, including three in Scotland.

There are currently 25,135 UK Government civil service positions in Scotland, with 22 departments having a presence north of the border.

That includes 9,970 full time equivalent jobs in Glasgow – which is home to the Cabinet Office’s second headquarters – as well as 3,485 in Edinburgh and an additional 645 posts in Aberdeen.

The UK Government said that moving the roles out of London will bring £729 million of economic benefits to the 13 named growth areas by 2030.

Speaking about the move, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden said: “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.

“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.”

Government departments will now submit their plans for how many roles they plan to move to the various locations as part of the spending review.

In addition to the jobs moving to Aberdeen, the UK Government has said it will establish an energy campus there, with the city home to both the second HQ for the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero and the base for GB Energy.