Anger at plans to move Inverness tax jobs to central belt
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Highlands and Islands MSP David Stewart levelled the charge against moves by the UK government to create a series of new civil service “hubs” across the country.
Under current proposals this would include an Edinburgh base for up to 3000 Scottish civil service jobs, including staff from the HMRC tax agency.
Around 40 people are currently employed by HMRC in Inverness, based in River House in Young Street, and while the transfer of all jobs across the UK is expected to be completed by 2020, local staff look set to see their office closed early next year.
Caroline Nokes, the parliamentary secretary to the cabinet office, called the scheme a “landmark development” that would provide significant savings to taxpayers.
However, Mr Stewart said: “This appears to be yet another example of creeping centralisation, taking jobs and services from Inverness and the Highlands and locating them in the central belt. The National Audit Office has already deemed the plans ‘unrealistic’ and says the move would increase job losses and impact on tax services.
“It also says the relocation costs have escalated by almost £600 million across the UK in the last 14 months and there is no agreed programme business case.”
The watchdog also warned of a high risk of disruption, loss of expertise, and failure to achieve the planned costs savings.
“In short the plan does not appear to be value for money,” said Mr Stewart.
He added: “We should be relocating more agency and government jobs to the Highlands and Islands, not taking them away.
“Any centralisation affects the local economy and should be resisted.”
Mr Stewart said he will be writing to Mrs Nokes for more details on the proposals and his comments echo those of Highland Council leader Margaret Davidson who also wants answers about what the plans will mean for local staff.
“I am very concerned,” she said. “I will be seeking clarification from the minister with responsibility, Caroline Nokes, about exactly what the impact will be on HMRC staff in the city of Inverness; how many employees will be affected and what this will mean for the economy of Inverness and the wider Highlands.
“I will also be seeking justification for the centralisation of HMRC services to Edinburgh and how this will impact on HMRC’s Highland citizens.”
The moves are being opposed by the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) which represents many HMRC staff.
Mark Chapman, secretary for the union’s Aberdeen and Inverness Revenue and Customs branch said: “The programme is seeing jobs being stripped out of local communities, robbing HMRC and the public it serves of vast experience.
“It is a disgrace that Inverness will suffer as a result of the closure of the Inverness tax office, both through the loss of quality jobs in the area and a loss of disposable income that is spent in the area by staff.”
He added that the union had seen “no compelling evidence” to support the move.
However a spokeswoman for the tax agency said its plans had been taking shape since late 2015 and aim to “create a tax authority fit for the future.” She added that the move would also deliver “better public services at a lower cost to the taxpayer.”
She said the agency had been aware that in locations including Inverness the “vast majority” of staff would be unable to move to a new regional centre but all staff have had one-to-one meetings to discuss their circumstances and the support available.
This has included workshop sessions on career transition, she said, as well as pursuit of career redeployment opportunities and the launch of a voluntary redundancy scheme.
