2,300 jobs for Northern Rock tower as Newcastle Council agrees deal

Apr 22 2009 by Amy Hunt, The Journal

Sale agreed

THE sale of the Rock’s Rainton Bridge office in Houghton-le-Spring was confirmed earlier this month.

Northern Rock struck a deal to sell the brand new block to npower.

And the energy firm announced it would move 900 call centre staff to the premises from its offices in Newcastle city centre.

Union leaders criticised the decision, saying workers who live north of the Tyne had not been told about their move from Carliol House.

Last night Newcastle’s Labour leader Nick Forbes said: "Why on earth didn’t the council offer npower office space in the Northern Rock Tower? I think that was a missed opportunity to keep jobs in the city.

"Now 5,000 jobs have been lost from Newcastle as a result of the Liberal Democrat council’s incompetence."

The Rainton Bridge sale was rumoured to be the biggest property deal in the region for a decade, though neither Northern Rock nor npower would say how much it was worth.

Now it is thought the city council’s buy-up of the Northern Rock Tower could be the biggest property deal made by a council since the economic downturn began.