Dundee staff among those facing losing their jobs after DVLA announcement
More than 120 Scottish jobs — including a dozen in Dundee — could be lost after the UK Government announced plans to close 39 regional Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency offices.
The Dundee DVLA office is at Caledonian House.
- By Stefan Morkis
- Published in the Courier : 14.12.11
- Published online : 14.12.11 @ 05.42pm
Less than a fortnight before Christmas, Roads Minister Mike Penning put forward plans to centralise DVLA services in Swansea — which would cost more than 1,200 UK jobs.
Mr Penning said the closures would take place by the end of 2013 and save £28 million a year. He said more services will be available online.
The DVLA has five offices in Scotland and all are now earmarked for closure. Twelve people are employed in Dundee, nine in Aberdeen, 26 in Edinburgh, eight in Inverness and 67 in Glasgow, which is also an enforcement centre.
The regional offices carry out administrative tasks such as arranging trade plates for garages, vehicle inspections and personalised registration transfers.
Enforcement centres also have duties relating to offences such as failure to tax a vehicle or driving without insurance.
Mr Penning said: ''This is a major step change which will make dealing with the DVLA easier and quicker for motorists and businesses up and down the country.''
DVLA chief executive Simon Tse said: ''The DVLA has been serving motorists for over 40 years in one form or another. But times change and customers' needs change.
''That is why it's essential that we move with the times and make the best use of our services and experience to make sure we give the motor industry and the general public a service that is fit for the 21st century, allows them to carry out their business in a way that suits them and offers the best value for money for the taxpayer.''
The Public and Commercial Services Union has vowed to fight the closures. General secretary Mark Serwotka also criticised the timing of the announcement.
He said: ''With unemployment and inflation remaining high, these cuts to local communities are outrageous and unnecessary, and will further weaken economies crying out for investment.
''DVLA senior managers have previously denied this is what they were planning, so to announce it just two weeks before Christmas is insulting and devastating for staff.''
Mr Serwotka said he believed the government has decided to proceed with the closures, despite the official three-month consultation only beginning on Tuesday.
SNP Westminster transport spokesman Angus MacNeil MP said: ''The closure of all five of Scotland's regional DVLA offices would be totally unacceptable, throwing away years of staff knowledge and expertise, and diminishing important services which are paid for by Scottish taxpayers.
''Talk by ministers of making more transactions available online is not an answer for people in rural areas who do not have access to super-fast broadband, or in some cases broadband at all, so the centralisation of services would hit the Highlands and Islands especially hard.
''When people want services delivered closer to home it is wrongheaded for the UK Government to keep centralising services.''
The DVLA has been a Government agency since 1990. It employs 6,116 staff with 1,213 potentially affected by the closures.
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