acob Rees-Mogg is planning to unload £1.5 billion value of Authorities premises in central London as he continues his marketing campaign to make civil servants return to the workplace.
The minister for Brexit alternatives and authorities effectivity informed The Sunday Telegraph taxpayers mustn’t should “fork out for half-empty buildings”, including that costly workplace area had been “under-utilised”.
Mr Rees-Mogg informed the newspaper he’ll subsequent week publish a Authorities Property Technique geared toward realising £2 billion in financial savings from property gross sales and efficiencies which is able to consolidate workers into fewer buildings as a part of a community of Authorities “hubs”.
Nevertheless, it was not clear to what extent the initiative outlined by the minister within the Telegraph article was new or a part of the present Locations for Progress programme which was introduced by the Cupboard Workplace in June.
On the time, the Cupboard Workplace estimated as much as £31 billion can be generated in financial advantages by the programme which aimed to construct civil service profession pathways exterior of London by shifting 22,000 roles out of the capital by 2030.
A few of these London civil service positions slated for relocation to Manchester had been positioned in an workplace headed for demolition beneath HS2 plans, the Authorities mentioned in June.
The PA information company has contacted the Cupboard Workplace for remark.
Based on the Telegraph, the soon-to-be-published Authorities Property Technique will spotlight a “additional £500 million of financial savings” that has been focused by a discount in working prices with shifting civil servants out of London.
Mr Rees-Mogg mentioned: “We have now seen during the last 12 months that costly workplace area in central London has been underutilised. Why ought to the taxpayer be made to fork out for half-empty buildings?”
The sale of the London places of work would reduce the price of the general public property in order that the Authorities might “return cash to the taxpayer” he informed the Telegraph, including: “All spending on Authorities property must be justified.”
The paper added that the “new technique” would “feed into” the present Locations for Progress programme.
It comes after a long-running marketing campaign by Mr Rees-Mogg to encourage civil servants to return to the workplace after coronavirus restrictions have been scrapped.
The previous Commons chief got here beneath fireplace from Tradition Secretary Nadine Dorries for his “Dickensian” ways after he left calling playing cards in “abandoned” Whitehall workspaces and wrote to Cupboard ministers urging them to coerce workers right into a “speedy return to the workplace”.
The FDA union which represents senior civil servants branded the method “crass” and “condescending”, accusing Mr Rees-Mogg of damaging morale among the many workforce.
Labour MPs known as the minister’s transfer “patronising” and “passive-aggressive”.
