QUESTIONS remain over the future of one of Newport city centre's prime office buildings, months after Admiral workers left their desks there for the last time.

The insurance firm had made Admiral House, in Queensway, its base in the city, but none of its staff have worked there since January.

The city council is engaged in ongoing discussions, its leader said last week, to secure a future for the building, which comprises seven floors and more than 7,000 square metres of office space. 

Once the workplace for hundreds of Admiral staff, and in a central location with car parking and access to the railway station, its demise marked a blow for Newport.

Half of the staff at Admiral House left the building at the beginning of 2022, after the insurance company announced it would be "consolidating its South Wales property portfolio in response to its commitment to hybrid working".

That decision meant many workers were transferred to Admiral's Cardiff office.

A spokesperson for Admiral told the Argus the firm had gone ahead with its plan to move the rest of its Newport staff out of the city's office, and that no workers have been based there since January.

The loss of of a reported 900 workers from central Newport will likely have a wider effect on the city, as hospitality and retail misses out on footfall.

Newport City Council has been working on securing a future for Admiral House since last February, when a report described a "high level of interest" from parties looking to occupy the building.

But rumours that another insurance firm was moving into Admiral House last October proved to be wide of the mark.

Last week, Lib Dem councillor Carmel Townsend asked council leader Jane Mudd to "provide an update of her ongoing discussions on the future of the former Admiral Insurance site on Queensway".

Cllr Mudd said: "Admiral House is privately owned. Senior officers meet with representatives of the Admiral Group on a monthly basis and provide regular updates on the latest position."