Town ‘betrayed and abandoned’
UK Government condemned by politicians
Lanarkshire MSPs have accused the UK Government of abandoning East Kilbride following its decision to relocate 1000 civil service jobs away from the town.
Gillian Mackay MSP branded the decision to move the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) jobs out of East Kilbride as “deeply concerning” during a Scottish Parliament debate on a motion put forward by the town’s Collette Stevenson MSP, who herself described it as a “betrayal”.
The former Overseas Development Administration and Department for International Development (DFID) has been based at Abercrombie House in East Kilbride since the early 1980s. Last month, it was revealed that, with no prior consultation, 1000 staff were told they are to be relocated to Glasgow.
Stevenson led the Holyrood debate and expressed her gratitude that SNP, Green and Labour colleagues supported her motion, but also disappointment that no Conservative MSP supported it.
She called on the UK Government to scrap the plans and “avoid a further broken promise to the people of East Kilbride”.
The East Kilbride MSP added: “The UK Tory Government’s plan to close down the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in East Kilbride is a betrayal of the town. It has already caused unnecessary stress for many employees, and it could lead to millions of pounds of damage to the East Kilbride economy.”
Central Scotland MSP Mackay described the decision as a “slap in the face to the town” during the members’ business debate last week.
The Scottish Greens MSP said: “This decision, abruptly made by the UK Government, has far-reaching consequences for FCDO workers, their families and the constituents of East Kilbride.
“Moving valuable jobs away from smaller communities, particularly at the expense of the people of East Kilbride, contradicts the very principles the government purportedly supports.
“I urge the UK Government to reconsider and reverse this illadvised decision, emphasising the need for a renewed commitment to the workers of Abercrombie House and East Kilbride.”
Following an intervention by Motherwell and Wishaw MSP Clare Adamson, Conservative MSP Graham Simpson, who lives in the town, insisted there would be no job losses.
“The announcement by the FCDO at the end of last year that it intends to move out of Abercrombie house and go to
Glasgow came as a shock,” he admitted. “It certainly came as a shock to me; I cannot stand here and say that I was delighted about that – of course I am not delighted. I would rather that it stayed in East Kilbride. The decision is a result of the lease ending on the current HMRC building at Queensway house.”
Labour’s Monica Lennon MSP highlighted that staff had been given only an hour’s notice of the move before it was made public.
The Central Scotland representative, said: “I am frankly astounded by the announcement on the FCDO – both the decision itself and the way it has been made. These staff have been working, and in many cases living, in East Kilbride for decades and are important contributors to our local community and economy. “
She called on the parties to pull together on the matter, adding: “There is time to unite, to put East Kilbride first, to put those jobs first and to go back with questions for the Secretary of State for Scotland and other UK ministers, who have a plan that does not really add up.”
Gillian Mackay MSP had also called for unity, saying: “As recently as 2021, the UK Government made a commitment to send an additional 500 workers to the facility. Now we have another decision instead.
“We should join together to strongly advocate the preservation of the jobs and expertise of, and the valuable contributions made by, the workers at Abercrombie house”.
At the time of the announcement, a UK Government spokesperson said: “The FCDO is growing its presence and number of staff in Scotland. To widen their future talent pool, FCDO is relocating to a modern building in Central Glasgow confirming the UK Government’s long-term commitment to Scotland.
“HMRC will be moving into Abercrombie House, which is a building that is already part of the UK Government estate, providing better value for money to the taxpayer and which will continue to boost the economy of East Kilbride.”
An HMRC spokesperson said: “HMRC confirmed its longterm presence in East Kilbride in January 2022.
“On December 7, 2023, we announced Abercrombie House as our future location in the town, at the same time that the FCDO updated their staff of their future plans. HMRC and FCDO coordinated timing of these announcements.
“HMRC evaluated several options for a new location in East Kilbride and, when we became aware of its future availability, Abercrombie House was identified as best value for the taxpayer.”