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Controversial relocation of Sheffield BIS policy office confirmed by government

The government has confirmed that it is to press ahead with controversial plans to relocate the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) policy office from Sheffield to London as part of a £350m cost-cutting exercise.

In a move which the government claims will modernise the way BIS functions, a new combined London headquarters and policy centre will be created, replacing the current BIS office at St Paul’s Place in Sheffield.

It will mean that from 2018 that all BIS policy decisions will be made from the newly opened headquarters in the capital, combining the functions of 14 offices on a site that is close to Westminster.

Plans for the move have been brewing since late January, when BIS Permanent Secretary Martin Donnelly announced that the government had begun planning for the relocation in an attempt to cut costs and increase efficiency as part of the wider BIS 2020 plan.

After consultation with staff and trade unions in the intervening months about alternative approaches, the government has now decided to rubber stamp the relocation.

Commenting on today’s news Martin Donnelly, explained that the decision to close the Sheffield office had not been taken lightly and that the government was introducing a range of support measures to help affected staff.

He said: “Creating one policy centre in London and closing the BIS office in Sheffield in 2018 is a decision that has not been made lightly. It remains our top priority that staff are fully supported and briefed on what this means for them and their options.

“We have talked and listened to staff and unions. Making a decision which impacts on people’s lives and families is never easy. And we have decided that all staff will be able to stay in their current role and location until January 2018.

“After that, anyone who wants a role in London will be able to have one, with assistance towards the cost of travel for the first 3 years.”

After the initial announcement in January, the plans draw ire from some quarters who levelled the charge of hypocrisy at a government pushing their Northern Powerhouse agenda of economic growth in the North, whilst simultaneously uprooting more civil service jobs to London.

However, it seems the department has been undeterred by the criticism as it forges on with its BIS 2020 restructuring proposal, of which Donnelly claims the Sheffield office is a major component.

He added: “Today’s announcement forms part of wider plans to modernise the way BIS works to become a smaller, more flexible department that will deliver £350 million in savings for the taxpayer by 2020.”

BIS 2020 is the government’s ambitious restructuring programme for the department which aims to slash operating costs and headcount by 30 to 40%, and will also see its operations, which are currently based across 80 sites UK-wide, combined into seven regional business centres.

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