The Scottish Government has been challenged to help Aberdeen through the offshore industry crisis – by bringing 300 new civil service jobs in the city.
Local authority leader Jenny Laing, pictured below, has urged First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to base the new the Scottish Benefits Agency in the north-east.
The department will take charge of £3billion of welfare spending north of the border including support for the unemployed, the carers’ allowance, the disability living allowance, cold weather payments and housing payments. It has been ushered in by the Scotland Act 2016 which gives the Holyrood parliament further devolved powers.
Councillor Laing said a decision by the first minister to locate the jobs in the north-east would be a sign that Aberdeen was not the “SNP’s forgotten city”.
In a letter to Ms Sturgeon she said: “As you know, Aberdeen has suffered greatly over the past two years as a result of the dramatic downturn in the oil and gas industry.
“Tens of thousands of jobs have been lost and it seems not a month goes by without yet another announcement of further job cuts in the beleaguered sector.
“You can imagine the impact – both economic and psychological – that such devastating news has on the people who live and work in the city.
“The new welfare agency will see the creation of 300 jobs, and although a drop in the ocean when you consider the speed and ferocity in which our city’s employment has been decimated, I believe any decision to base the new agency in Aberdeen will send a strong signal to people here that the Scottish Government is making every possible effort to mitigate the impact of the current crisis.”
Mrs Laing added: “Aberdeen has been hit by a series of hammer blows and, despite our disproportionate contribution to the UK and Scottish economies over the past 40 years, we have seen very little in the way of support from the SNP government.
“As you prepare to dole out the goodies from the Smith Commission, you should show the people of Aberdeen that we are not the SNP’s forgotten city and that you will do everything in your power to support Aberdeen during this difficult period. The location for such a critical agency in Aberdeen can only have a positive impact on our local economy and employment situation.”
Recent industry figures have revealed as many as 120,000 jobs have been lost in the UK’s offshore industry – a large percentage of them in the north-east.
It is understood that politicians in Dundee are also pleading with the SNP administration in Edinburgh to base the new agency on Tayside.
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said local authorities would be “engaged with” over the location of the agency.
She said: “The transfer of some limited responsibility for social security to the Scottish Parliament gives us a real opportunity to transform the service people receive and to provide the protection and support that individuals need.
“Our new Scottish social security agency will be the flagship organisation that oversees the delivery of benefits in Scotland.
“We are not yet at the stage of making a decision on the location of the agency, and there will be many potential locations to consider across the length and breadth of Scotland.
“We will continue to engage with stakeholders, including local authorities, as the business case for the new social security agency is developed.”
