Figures from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) reveal that public sector job cuts will be even more severe than originally forecast. In addition, the government has announced controversial proposals for the ending of national pay rates for public employees and the introduction of regionalised pay.

In November, the OBR announced a massive hike in the forecast for public sector job losses up to 2017; from 400,000 to 710,000, following indications that the sector was shedding jobs at the rate of about 80,000 a quarter across both central and local government. The OBR expects this rate to slow this year, but to still amount to an average loss of 10,000 jobs a month up to 2017. The OBR is now expecting that total public sector employment reductions will be as high as 730,000.

In the Budget, the Chancellor, George Osborne, also announced the widely expected measure that national rates of pay within the public sector would be scrapped in favour of regionalised pay rates. The move was intended to balance the wide fluctuation in the cost of living across the country with public employees in the south of England struggling to cope. The change may come in as soon as this year when some existing pay arrangements come to an end. The announcement was heavily criticised by unions who claimed it was a further attack on public workers.

There was certainly no direct extension of plans to help reduce unemployment; the Youth Contract scheme, designed to help young people into work, received no additional finance in addition to the £1 billion funding already allocated and there were no specific employment measures announced.

The Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) own forecast for unemployment remained unaffected by the budget. The department expects unemployment to reach a peak sometime this year at 2.8 million, which represents 8.7% of the workforce and then for the situation to improve to 6.3% sometime in 2016-17.

It seems therefore that the Chancellor is pinning his hopes that job creation will come from his overall measures to stimulate the economy. According to forecasts, the economy is set to grow by 0.8% over the current year and increase steadily to 3% in 2015.

Companies have welcomed a fall in corporation tax which will fall 1% from next month and be followed by equal reductions in the next two years. In 2014, the rate will stand at 22%. The government hopes this decrease will result in companies increasing investment in the UK and provide the necessary stimulus to job creation. It is not a view however shared by the OBR which predicted that by 2016 output over the economy as a whole would have increased by just 0.1%.

The Budget did however contain some measures that will boost certain industries. Changes to planning laws were hailed as a boon to the construction industry, which according the head of the Centre for Economics and Business Research, Douglas Williams, could result in an extra 200,000 jobs by 2015.

Another big winner was the technology and digital sector. Specific tax breaks should see an expansion of the video game, animation and makers of high end television programmes: good news for job seekers in these industries.

In the ‘Women in Economic Decision Making in the EU: Progress Report’, published by the Justice Commission earlier this month, it was reported that progress to redress the gender imbalance of corporate boards had been ‘limited’. This was emphasised by the fact that if change continues at the current rates, it will take until 2050 for women to gain a measure of balance in business decision making.

Across the EU women command only 13.7% of seats in company boardrooms and although this was an increase of 1.9% in 14 months, the rate of change is still too slow according to EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding. She revealed that across Europe only 24 companies had signed up to her scheme to increase female participation on boards to 30% by 2015. As a result of the slow progress, the EU is now considering enforcing quotas on companies in order to facilitate faster paced change.

In the UK, women make up just over 15% of the board of companies in the FTSE 100. Last year’s ‘Women on Boards Report’ by Lord Davies recorded that the figure was 12.5%. There are signs of progress but it is likely to be well short of the report’s recommendation that women should have 25% representation on corporate boards by 2015.

The Scottish Government has announced that it will hold a referendum in Autumn 2014 on the question of independence from the rest of the UK. However this uncertainty is stopping companies from investing and as a result, is having a damaging impact on jobs.

According to statistics released in February, 16,000 jobs were lost in the last three months of 2011. Scottish unemployment currently stands at 231,000, 8.6%, which is the highest number in the UK. In order to reverse the trend, the Scottish economy is in need of fresh investment. However companies are naturally reticent to invest in a region that may be a separate country in just a few short years with an unknown government and unspecified economic policies.

Business leaders point to the lack of detail about what independence for Scotland will actually mean for companies. There has been little in-depth debate on how an independent Scotland might function and it is even unclear as to what currency an independent Scotland would use. With many European businesses already grappling with uncertainties over the future of the Euro, few international corporations are willing to take a risk with Scottish independence.

Many departments are acknowledging that skills of people within their departments are not always aligned correctly to the new and increased responsibilities of the job role.  It has also been noted that candidates who once may have been offered interviews based on a junior skill level in a required field are now not being invited, presumably because the employer is aware of demand for jobs outstripping supply of candidates and wants to research further to find a suitable person with exceptional skills in the required area.

Plenty of IT, internal or process related projects continue and many employers seek to finish these before the budget season reappears by recruiting project managers.  An uncertain future means typically staff sourced to finish the projects are taken on a contractor or temporary basis as there is a reduction in the number of permanent staff sought.

Government business thrives on the availability of data. To act as a liaison between technical staff and developers the market is seeing a continued demand for technical architects who are seen as a vital link in managing the projects and interacting across multiple departments.

Seeking to lower supply chain costs and then making the very best of available cash balances and budgets is a significant part of cost reduction so the market continues to demand finance and procurement professionals, often to add to existing teams rather than as replacement roles.

We predict these general trends to continue until the budget and new financial year, after which time it will very much depend on the countries economic situation and business growth potential.

• Tighter controls and funding cuts led to increased opportunities for project managers and business analysts.

• The reliance on information technology combined with a reducing candidate pool created almost continual demand for technical architects.

• Governing in austere times increased the need for proficient, timely communications with stakeholders and general public creating a significant rise in marketing roles.

• 2012 is set to concentrate on efficiency and productivity. As efficiency targets and cost saving measures will drive many projects in 2012 we predict continued requirements for procurement managers and supply chain professionals.

• Despite austerity measures across central government, we predict a continuation of the growth in marketing and communication roles across most departments. With public perception of government an important measure of the national mood, we anticipate a prolonged strategy of ensuring information is communicated properly which will require extra marketing capacity at every level.

As the government seeks to make the most of curtailed budgets, we expect to see a rise in the number of roles for finance and procurement professionals. Savings in procurement and supply chain go straight to the bottom line, and funds managed by experienced finance teams are likely to grow faster than those that are not.

With the civil service required to take a more commercial view of its activities, we predict a rise in demand for project managers from a strong delivery focused background. Bringing such skills firmly into the civil service is an integral part of the sectors’ recovery and we anticipate this to underline many of the recruitment trends in 2012.

How do our predictions stack up against yours?

Tell us what you expect to see from an attraction, retention or talent management point of view in Central Government during 2012 in the comment box below:

Critical to the success of government policy is public perception. We have seen strong growth in roles coming in for media and policy managers, marketing officers and external relations officers further supported by vacancies for head of digital delivery in several regions.

To continue keeping a close eye on costs we have seen proportionate growth and multiple openings for financial accountants and data analysts.

As several key departments delay major IT project implementation we see a trend of improving existing infrastructure rather than renewing it. We continue to take instructions for additional engineering developers and ICT support technicians across the estate.

As the government embraces web technologies and the cost saving transformations it can bring in the future we see continued investment in application developers, system developers and web developers.

Despite prevalent austerity measures and a dire economic situation the government has set £650m aside to develop this thin blue line and police the expanse of cyber space.

Keeping people and businesses safe on the web is a tier 1 national security priority, ahead even of “international military crises,” and Britain is leading the way on the world stage, positioning itself as the de facto thought leader on such matters.

In less than six months time the newly created Joint Task Force takes control of our defence cyber security in April 2012. Chaired by GCHQ and in partnership with the Ministry of Defence, multiple police departments and international security services, the strategy will affect how each and every one of us use the internet.

The Rt Hon Francis Maude MP, cabinet minister for cyber security, has given himself until 2015 to present the UK as the safest place in the world to conduct online business, mitigate national security and infrastructure threats and conduct a majority of public services online. A high aspiration by any means, but one backed by the highest levels of government, security and defence.

What does this mean for employment, who is going to benefit and what challenges do we anticipate?

Walking the cyber security beat requires a range of skill sets quite unlike any other project. A comprehensive approach will include the creation of new jobs in fraud investigation, software, training and networking but we expect to see the majority of jobs centered about developers, analysts, network engineers and security specialists. As technology evolves we expect to see a strong culture within the community dedicated to continually updating skills and current qualifications, leading to an increase in training, examination and certification jobs by 2015.

The government has promised at least 25% of the value of security contracts will be awarded to the SME market, ensuring this initiative remains truly attractive to all sizes of business and giving excellent scalability. We expect cyber security opportunities to spawn new businesses, a move fully anticipated by the government who is preparing venture capital backing for suitable start ups.

With a world leading programme coming together, the government is well on its way to establishing the UK’s credentials in the market and, within a short time, we would have developed skills and expertise which can be exported to other nations, making a sound business case for the current investment.

Many of today’s under graduates currently studying for a computer science, mathematics or programming degree stand to benefit the most especially if they take a focus on security either at or after university. All elements will require project and business managers so we anticipate a gradual increase in such roles as well as project accountants to keep budgets on track. The infrastructure connecting the UK continues to grow and as such we expect more network engineering jobs to become available, favouring people with Cisco, Novelle and other hardware qualifications including those certifying in our expanding fibre optic networks.

We anticipate specialist police departments being created to enforce online safety, new partnership management roles being created within previously closed departments to capitalise on the strengths of networking, and key stake holders such as internet service providers and security software manufacturers placing more emphasis on communication roles as each one strives to be regarded as a serious industry commentator and trusted advisor by the public.

Early calculations suggest over 100 roles and professions for 75,000 people a year could come from the cyber security strategy being implemented. The challenges include ensuring Britain’s finest minds feel attracted to working in this industry, keeping them motivated and retaining their talent. For those working within the government, research or its defence contractors, ensuring our stringent security clearance procedures are not compromised is a challenge. Keeping a flow of high calibre candidates when some vetting procedures take nine months to complete is a challenge unheard of in any other industry.

When Sir Tim Berners-Lee showcased the internet as we know it in 1990, such advancement requiring several cabinet ministers to manage the security strategy for a multi billion pound economy involving the most powerful countries on earth would have seemed unlikely. How the internet matures and what threats, both foreign and domestic, proliferate over the next 21 years will set the irretrievable internet landscape our own children will use.

Share your plans for up skilling or re skilling so you can take advantage of the anticipated new jobs below

What plans do you have for taking on new staff to cope with the anticipated demand or commercial potential offered?

Announcing the grants, Prime Minister David Cameron spoke of an “all-out mission” to help get the economy moving.

The grants to English businesses fall within the second round of the government’s £1.4bn regional growth fund, covering the north and north west of the country.

Just under 120 businesses in the region have successfully bid for grants and will receive their money within the next few months.

Ministers responsible for the grants say that they will create around 37,000 jobs. A further 164,000 jobs will be protected whilst almost £6bn of private investment will be made following the initial round of support.

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said that they welcomed the initiatives, especially as the medium-sized businesses who have received grant money “have the greatest growth potential but are often held back by difficulties accessing long-term finance”.

Dr Neil Bentley, deputy director general of the CBI, said: “Crucially it will help rebalance the UK economy, boosting areas that have been depending on public sector funding.”

The news will also be welcomed by candidates seeking new opportunities as a change from their existing private and public sector jobs.

Former secretary of state Lord Heseltine has written a report with Terry Leahy, former CEO of Tesco, investigating how to boost the economy in the north west.

In the report, Heseltine and Leahy say that civil service jobs should be returned to the region in order to end the economic bias towards the south east.

The report contains several other recommendations that could boost jobs in the region.

The authors say that business rates should be pooled across the six authorities in the north west in order to support high-return growth projects. They also want Liverpool to be the home of the first World Expo in the UK since the Festival of Britain was held in 1951.

Lord Heseltine is renowned for his knowledge of the area and has headed up regeneration projects there before. In the late 1970s and early 1980s he led major projects including the Garden Festival Site and the resurrection of the Albert Dock.

In the preface to his report, Lord Heseltine writes: “These are not ‘pie in the sky’ ideas but practical suggestions as to how the city region can build upon its existing strengths and shape its future to ensure that it remains competitive and prosperous.”