Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much will be saved by the closure of the Wallasey Jobcentre Plus in Liscard; which other locations in the Wirral were considered for closure; what assessment his Department made of the economic effect on Liscard town centre of the closure; for what reason no consultation was undertaken prior to that decision; and what assessment he has made of the potential financial, time and other costs to (a) claimants and (b) staff of the planned closure.

No decision has been made regarding the proposed closure of Wallasey Jobcentre Plus.

We are currently in a period of consultation with key stakeholders ending Friday 18 September. A formal decision will be made after this time.

As part of our ‘business as usual approach’ to achieving value for money from all our DWP estate, we routinely seek opportunities to make better use of the estate. This includes estate we currently have as well as opportunities to co-locate with other key stakeholders where the service to our claimants can be maintained or improved. The proposal to relocate services and staff from Wallasey Jobcentre into Birkenhead is part of that approach.