Cuts to the civil service could impact heavily on office rents, it has been claimed.
Unveiled last week, Chancellor George Osborne’s emergency Budget introduced a series of cost-cutting measures as the government embarks on the deepest cuts to public spending since the end of the second World War.
Among these is a plan to reduce staffing levels at select government departments by 25 per cent, spelling a massive reduction in office space occupied by the public sector.
Currently some 83 million sq ft of office space across the UK is occupied by the civil service. This equates to around 150 office blocks.
Jonathan Thompson, global head of real estate at KPMG, told the Telegraph: “The major impact of the Budget for the property industry will be the cuts in Government spending and the consequential reduction in the Government occupied estate.
“It has already been announced that 150 magistrates’ courts are to close and North Dorset is ceasing to fund sports and arts with the closure of its leisure centre.”