HMRC confirms location of Glasgow regional centre

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has formally signed an agreement to lease a ten storey new build, at 1 Atlantic Square, Argyle Street in Glasgow, for 25 years.

HMRC will be one of the largest employers in the city when it takes an estimated 187,205 sq. ft. of office space, eventually accommodating around 2,700 full-time equivalent employees from across the department by 2021.

Atlantic Square is the 10th of the 13 new regional centres that HMRC has announced, as part of its transformation plans to create a tax authority fit for the future.

HMRC is investing in the best of modern technology and basing its people in state-of-the-art and more cost-effective buildings, as it creates better, more modern customer services and makes it harder for the dishonest minority to cheat the system.

Jon Thompson, HMRC chief executive and first permanent secretary, said: “Our Glasgow Regional Centre is another step in HMRC’s transformation into a modern, digitally-advanced tax authority. The centre will bring teams together promoting closer working relationships, increasing our effectiveness in collecting taxes and targeting the minority who don’t pay. We will invest in our people by creating career development opportunities, while creating stronger relationships with the local community.

“We are delighted to have agreed terms for Atlantic Square and to have made a commitment to our Regional Centre in Glasgow. This is the beginning of a process that will see our staff come together in state-of-the-art facilities, and make HMRC an important contributor to the economy and to communities in and around Glasgow.”

A Cabinet Office spokesperson said: “We are investing in multi-departmental government hubs across the UK so that even more civil servants will be able to work in modern, flexible offices, delivering the best quality public services from every corner of the country.”

Leader of Glasgow City Council, Councillor Susan Aitken, said: “This is a significant and long-term investment in Glasgow that reinforces the city’s status as a world-class business location and a major hub for jobs in the financial services sector.”