Private sector firms ‘won’t abandon Belfast offices’
BELFAST Chamber chief Simon Hamilton has said he does not believe there will be a mass departure of private sector office workers from the city centre as a result of the pandemic.
Mr Hamilton, also a former Executive Minister, spoke as the Department of Finance said it’s consulting with trade unions on a remote working policy for the NI Civil Service.
With home-working now firmly established, it’s giving civil servants the option of working from regional hubs in Ballykelly and Downpatrick from spring this year — a trend which could lessen demand for their city properties.
The department said it’s too soon to say how many civil servants would be accommodated in the hubs. There are 10 planned between now and 2023.
But Mr Hamilton said he did not think a trend to set up outside the city centre would be mirrored to a great extent in the private sector. “I’m speaking regularly to private sector businesses who have large office footprints in the city centre.
“There’s no doubt many are re-evaluating how staff will work in future, and there’s no doubt remote working and more flexible working is on the agenda. But I haven’t spoken to anyone giving the impression or indication that they’ll abandon city centre offices. There isn’t a big mass exodus coming.”
He said a number of new office builds were progressing, including Olympic House in Titanic Quarter and City Quays 3 at Clarendon Road.
Companies including Rapid7, Deloitte and PWC were also progressing moves to new offices.
Mr Hamilton, who has served as Stormont’s Minister for Finance and Personnel and for the Economy, said: “I would expect the Civil Service to look at its office footprint at this time but clearly there’s a recognition that being in city centres will remain an important aspect of their business as well.”
He said the Executive had shown commitment to preserving town and city centres through the work of the High Street Task Force, adding: “I know they will want to be careful that any actions they take don’t do further damage to cities and towns that have had a really tough year.”
The Civil Service also plans to launch hubs in Ballymena, Craigavon, Omagh and Newtownabbey next year. Projects in Derry, Enniskillen, Newry and Bangor/ Newtownards area are planned for 2023.