Banking blow for region as 700 more jobs axed

A total of 450 posts will go in IT operations at the part-nationalised bank in Halifax, while another 240 positions will be axed in Leeds.

More than half of staff affected in Leeds and a quarter of those in Halifax are in permanent roles. The remaining workers are contract and temporary staff brought in to help integrate the group's computer systems following its merger with Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS) in the wake of the bail-out by the taxpayer during the credit crisis in 2008.

In total, 4,500 staff will lose their jobs including 2,750 in the UK and 1,750 in India. It brings total job losses announced since the start of last year by Lloyds to 22,000.

The latest cull, revealed yesterday, cast a cloud over UK unemployment figures which saw numbers of jobless fall by 20,000 to 2.45 million, the lowest so far this year,although long-term unemployment rose to its highest in 13 years.

It comes against a grim warning from accountancy giant PwC yesterday predicting 500,000 private sector jobs could go as a result of Government spending cuts, pushing the total number of job losses to a million.

Last night Labour's Halifax MP Linda Riordan said banking was the bedrock of the town's

economy and she feared for the future.

"This is a bad day for Halifax. We are, I fear, beginning to see the drip effect of job losses which over a period of time could turn from dozens to hundreds into thousands," she said.

"The more job losses there are the more money is taken out of the local economy and the knock-on effects then spiral.

"The previous Labour government's intervention helped save many jobs in the town in 2008 – I just hope this Government takes as close an interest in protecting people's jobs in the town as the previous one did."

Clive Webster, deputy general secretary of the Accord union, said the move would be "devastating" for staff.

"In a difficult economic climate, the chances of them finding similar roles will be very slim," he said. "Over the past few weeks we heard lots of comments from senior bankers in the UK that they recognise that they have to change how they behave and operate and recognise that they have wider responsibilities than just what is legal and profitable. Accord believes that actions speak louder than words."

Lloyds said 1,600 permanent roles will be affected across the UK, 1,150 temporary and contract staff will go and a further 1,750 offshore contractor jobs will be cut in India. A quarter of the job losses would be in London as part of a reorganisation expected to be complete in another 18 months. Of 16,000 job cuts carried out so far, it said only 12 per cent involved compulsory redundancies.

In Yorkshire, 450 jobs will go in Halifax including 110 permanent roles. Most will be at the Trinity Road base in the town.

In Leeds, 240 positions will be axed including 140 permanent jobs. A total of 140 posts are going from its central Leeds locations and another 100 from its Pudsey base, where mainly temporary and contract staff are affected.

Director of operations Mark Fisher said: "Today marks another major step in bringing our businesses together. The changes we are putting in place will give us a world-class IT operation that will benefit our customers and all our other stakeholders."

n Millions of Halifax investors who received nearly 1,500 in free shares when the group demutualised have seen their windfall plummet to just 38, according to figures released on the second anniversary of the bank's rescue. Two million kept their shares but their value has crashed since 2008.