This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
Listen
300 jobs to be relocated
28/03/2003
More than 300 additional public sector jobs are set to be relocated around Scotland as a result of the Executive's jobs dispersal policy.
235 jobs in the Common Services Agency in Edinburgh will be relocated in two phases with the West of Scotland and Aberdeen benefiting from the transfer of 130 posts from the Practitioner Services Division as part of the first phase.
A further 30 CSA posts from the Information and Statistics Division, Practitioner Services Division and Scottish Healthcare Supplies will also move from Edinburgh to locations yet to be decided. These first phase moves are scheduled to take place before the end of next year.
The second phase involves the transfer of another 75 Information and Statistics Division staff before the end of 2006. Working in partnership with staff and trade unions, the Agency will explore every option to ensure that there are no compulsory redundancies.
As a follow up to the First Minister's announcement last October about the impact of small numbers of jobs in remote and rural areas the Executive has also identified 80 posts composed of small units, mostly from its core departments. They will be candidates for review to assess suitability for relocation to rural and remote parts of Scotland.
The Minister with responsibility for relocation policy, Deputy Minister for Finance and Public Services Peter Peacock, said:
"These announcements represent further significant steps forward in the Executive's programme for creating public sector job opportunities across Scotland.
"The First Minister promised to do this and we have achieved the first step towards this. This came in the wake of his visit to Benbecula where he witnessed how much of an impact a small number of such jobs can have on a rural community.
"The Executive is committed to the relocation policy and ensuring it is a policy for all of Scotland. The small units reviews will help us deliver on this by specifically targeting more remote and rural areas.
"The progress being made in this area is welcome and I look forward to working in partnership with Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Scottish Enterprise and others to deliver the policy."
Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm said:
"Today's announcement is the product of an extensive piece of work for both the Common Services Agency and the Scottish Executive in reviewing the relocation options for the Agency.
"This will end a period of uncertainty for the CSA and all its staff. It is a balanced package which sets out the future for relocated posts and for more than 800 staff who will remain in Edinburgh.
"I know that CSA Chairman Graeme Millar and Chief Executive Stuart Bain welcome this announcement and the opportunity it provides them to shape the future organisation of the Agency.
"The way ahead is now clear for the Agency to plan its property requirements both in Edinburgh and elsewhere and so that staff can move ahead with confidence to concentrate on providing the key support services that the NHS needs."
The first phase of the CSA relocation involves 160 posts moving before the end of 2004. The second phase, to be completed before the end of 2006, involves a further 75 posts in the Information and Statistics Division. The Agency will now work towards identifying suitable locations.
Together these account for 235 out of the CSA's 1100 staff based in Edinburgh. The 1100 figure excludes some 620 Edinburgh based staff of the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service which was not included in the scope of the relocation review.
The announcement clears the way for the Agency to agree new leases for the accommodation required for the additional functions to be carried out elsewhere in Scotland. It will also enable the Agency to secure appropriate long-term solutions to its Edinburgh property requirements following the expiry of its current lease on Trinity Park House in June 2004.
The First Minister announced details of the new small units policy at the Convention of Highlands and Islands at Oban on 28 October 2002.
The first review under this policy (the Crofters Building Grants and Loans Scheme) was announced at Oban.
Under the small units policy bodies covered by the main relocation policy have been invited to provide at least 2 examples of work they carry out which could be done from a more remote area. Responses from most organisations are expected later this Spring.
The Executive has already undertaken this exercise and identified further candidates from each of its core Departments as well as the General Register Office for Scotland.
Some of the work identified as suitable for relocation to remote areas may be combined for operational reasons so the number of (locations) may vary from four to seven. Where staff do not wish to move with the posts the Executive fully expect to be able to redeploy these staff and no redundancies are anticipated.
As a consequence of today's announcements around 1200 posts have already been located, or are planned to be located outwith Edinburgh under the main relocation policy and the small units policy. Around a further 2,000 posts are covered by planned relocation reviews.