MP Martin Docherty-Hughes has condemned the UK government for “unacceptable and dangerous” proposals to shut the Alexandria Job Centre.

Confirmation of the branch closure was made today by the Department of Work and Pensions and comes on the back of eight branch closures in Glasgow alone.

It's understood that services will now transfer over to the branch in Dumbarton.

But Docherty has already organised a petition against the closure and claims the closure of the branch will be a major loss to the area.

Mr Docherty-Hughes said: "The DWP’s planned closure of the Alexandria job centre is an irresponsible move which will negatively impact the lives of some of our most disadvantaged communities in the Vale of Leven – people they have not consulted.

"The Tory government has done absolutely nothing to mitigate our fears since the planned cuts were announced – being unable to provide any details of the number of people to be affected, and having failed to carry out any kind of equality impact assessment to see how groups such as single parents, carers or those with disabilities would be impacted by the closures.

"These closures across Scotland will hit vulnerable people who struggle to access services the hardest – with increased transport costs and additional time taken to travel, particularly those required to register daily or weekly. That increases the threat of sanctions, which is a serious concern.

"It’s all very well reimbursing travel expenses, but that assumes people have the money to lay out in the first place.

"If you find yourself unable to buy a bus or train ticket you risk losing all of your social security through sanctions for non-attendance – the DWP are not known for taking reasonable circumstances into account.

"Following so closely on from the RBS closure announcement, this is yet another blow the Vale of Leven doesn’t need. "

He added: "It is clear that the decision is being driven by the UK government’s ideological obsession with austerity – and it is deeply concerning that these closures represent just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Tory cuts.

"And it is the SNP who are standing up to these cuts at both Holyrood, Westminster, and through the Scottish Government.

"I would urge everyone to visit my website at www.martindocherty.scot and sign my petition.

"The Tory government must think again about these proposed cuts and I will be writing to the Minister opposing this local closure in the strongest terms."

Some of today’s announcements include proposals for merging 78 smaller Jobcentre Plus offices in urban areas with larger ones nearby, co-locating around 50 Jobcentre Plus offices with local authorities or other community services and closing 27 back office buildings around the country.

Damian Hinds, Minster for Employment said: "We will always make sure that people have the support they need to get into and progress within work, that’s why we are recruiting 2,500 more work coaches to help those who need it most.

"The way the world works has changed rapidly in the last 20 years and the welfare state needs to keep pace.

"As more people access their benefits through the internet many of our buildings are under-used.

"We are concentrating our resources on what we know best helps people into work.

"The changes we’ve announced today will help ensure that the way we deliver our services reflect the reality of today’s welfare system."