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is hidden down a tree-lined cul-de-sac in the centre of Cambridge.

Most people probably don't know it's there or what it does - and they probably never will now, as it's just become the latest victim of the cuts.

Communities Secretary has decided "in principle" to close it and all the other regional offices "subject to the satisfactory resolution of consequential issues through the Spending Review" ... whatever that means.

Closing the region offices will save Mr Pickles £119m a year.

It'll mean the loss of 1,700 civil servants jobs nationwide, 160 of them at Eastbrook in Cambridge.

The regional office co-ordinates and publicises the work of government departments in the Eastern region. Highways works, grants to local government, EU funding for deprived areas... it all goes through the Cambridge office. Supporters say it's vital work.

Mr Pickles calls it an "unnecessary tier of administration" which he believes to be inefficient, ineffective and unpopular.

"The Government Offices are not voices of the region in Whitehall. They have become agents of Whitehall to intervene and interfere in localities, and are a fundamental part of the 'command and control' apparatus of England's over-centralised state," he maintains.

No-one is surprised by this news. Both the Conservatives and Lib Dems have expressed their doubts about regional offices (set up in 1994 by - er - the Conservatives).

But those working at Eastbrook to whom we've spoken describe the mood as sad and angry that there's been no proper consultation.

"This will not only result in the loss of 160 jobs in this region but also the loss of all the expertise and the link-up between local authorities and central Government. It will result in local authorities having to recreate this themselves" says Richard Edwards, of the .

But the government believes the region's local authorities are more than capable of lobbying for money and overseeing its spending for themselves.

said that he "deeply regretted" the loss of these jobs and felt for the families that will be hit by this decision.

But he added " We are facing tough government decisions to bring down the
national debt and this office was another example of government bureaucracy. I am confident that by streamlining in this way we can make government more efficient and cost-effective."

The full details of when the office will close will emerge later in the year. But this is the largest single number of job losses in our region due to the coalition's cuts - so far.

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