Whitehall Shake-Up: Civil Service Cuts Bite Deep in London

The UK government has announced plans to reduce civil service roles, particularly in London, as part of wider efforts to cut costs, reorganise operations, and shift more decision-making outside the capital.

By 2030, the number of civil servants based in London is set to fall by around 12,000, from approximately 95,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff to 83,000.

As part of this move, 11 central London government offices—including the Department of Health and Social Care’s Victoria Street headquarters and the Ministry of Justice’s base at 102 Petty France—are scheduled to close. These closures are projected to save about £94 million a year in property costs by 2032.

Many roles are expected to be relocated to regional hubs in cities such as Manchester, Aberdeen, Birmingham, Leeds, Cardiff, Glasgow, and Belfast. The government says the approach is intended to bring decision-making closer to communities and support regional economies, with Manchester earmarked as a centre for digital innovation and AI, and Aberdeen focusing on energy policy.

Within the wider civil service, around 10,000 jobs are expected to be cut across all departments by 2025 as part of a plan to reduce administrative costs by 15% over three years. This includes approximately 750 posts in 2025. The Cabinet Office’s own headcount is expected to fall by around 2,100 over two years.

Civil service numbers have grown since 2016, reaching more than 514,000 by late 2024, partly due to Brexit-related work, increased border controls, and additional service demands. The current Labour government, led by Chancellor Rachel Reeves, says the changes aim to control operating costs and modernise the civil service, while emphasising a commitment to flexibility, hybrid working, and avoiding compulsory redundancies.

Unions have raised concerns about job losses and relocations, calling for assurances that changes will not damage staff careers and for greater clarity on how the reforms will be implemented.

The 750 job reductions planned for 2025 form part of a longer-term restructuring intended to create a smaller, regionally distributed civil service.

Supporters argue this will improve efficiency and save taxpayers money, while critics warn of potential disruption to services and challenges for staff affected by the changes. broader government agenda aimed at reshaping the civil service into a smaller, more efficient institution that is regionally dispersed to better serve local communities, save taxpayer money, and modernize government operations for the future.