Taxpayer owned RBS cuts another 3,500 jobs

State-owned Royal Bank of Scotland has announced it is set to cut anther 3,500 jobs in the UK but has decided to move some 500 jobs to the Far East, India and America.

Around one third of the job cuts are linked to the sale of RBS and Natwest branches to Spain's Santander and 1,000 IT staff will also be lost as RBS is set to close or withdraw from 12 UK centres. The fate of a further three centres is under review,

Rob MacGregor, Unite national officer said: 'The scale of the cuts beggars belief and staff across the country today will be left reeling from this news.'

He said the move was a clear sign the financial services sector has little respect for the skills and expertise of it's staff and has 'scant regard for the high level of service these very same staff provide to their customers.'

He pointed out RBS - which is 84% owned by the government - swung to profit in the first half of the year and said the group is making steady progress turning itself into a 'safer' business.

The latest jobs cull means 21,500 staff have been made redundant at the bank since the group began to review its operations last year.