| The Scottish Executive decided to relocate the 76 jobs to Falkirk because the Commission’s need to serve the whole of the country made a central location vital.
Dundee had made the short list of possible new sites, but deputy health minister Rhona Brankin killed off the city’s hopes when she said, “The Mental Welfare Commission plays a very important role in the protection of people with mental disorders.
“The Commission needs to be able to visit people throughout Scotland in hospitals and in the community. Location in Falkirk will ensure that the Commission is well placed to continue to carry out its important functions in an efficient manner.”
The Commission will be leaving Edinburgh when its office lease expires at the end of March next year.
Deputy finance minister Tavish Scott, who has responsibility for the relocation policy, “This is further evidence of the Executive’s determination to ensure public sector posts and the benefits they bring are spread throughout the country.”
Sadly for Dundee, the Executive’s notion of spreading jobs seems not to extend very often beyond the central belt.
In addition to Falkirk, Dundee had been up against Ayr, Dumfries, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Johnstone, Paisley, Port Glasgow, Stirling and Hamilton for the Mental Welfare Commission jobs.
The Commission said it examined each option, taking into account the need to balance good transport links and availability of property with the socio-economic benefit the Commission would bring to any new location.
The Executive’s policy on relocation has been in operation since 1999. It states that when a new unit or agency is established, or if an existing unit is merged or otherwise reorganised, a location review must be undertaken to decide where the body should be located.
Dundee City Council and Dundee and Tayside Chamber of Commerce and Industry have consistently made the case for Dundee, but their success has been limited.
Although the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care and the Scottish Social Services Council have located in Dundee and the new Scottish Charities Regulator will be following suit, the city still has a small proportion of civil service jobs when compared with other parts of the country.
Critics of the Executive claim that, although some jobs have come to Dundee, more have been lost in recent years. |
