WORKERS at more than 30 banks in the region are facing an uncertain future after 1,700 job cuts were announced across the UK.

National Australia Bank said the cuts at its Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks - due to take place over the next 12 to 18 months - are necessary to make its UK operation "more nimble and customer-focussed".

Yorkshire Bank, which has about 30 branches, including 12 on Teesside, did not say where the jobs would go, but said it would announce in May which unprofitable branches would close.

The group employs about 10,300 people in the UK, including at 217 branches of Glasgow-based Clydesdale and at 232 outlets of Leeds-based Yorkshire.

National said that some of the 1,700 positions would be accounted for by normal staff turnover and redeployment, with most being in back office roles. Annual savings from the initiatives are expected to be £117m.

The moves come as National begins to expand into the South, including through the opening of 15 Clydesdale-branded centres for use by small and medium-sized businesses.

The company, which recently completed the sale of Northern Bank and National Irish Bank, said it would look for cost savings from an overhaul of management structures and its technology.

At the same time, it will establish 50 flagship branches offering business banking, as well as the usual high street services.

About 20 per cent of the job losses will be customer-facing roles, with the rest achieved from the integration of office roles at Clydesdale and Yorkshire, which have been run separately since their acquisitions in 1987 and 1990.

The number of products sold by the two operations will be reduced from 320 to 140, although a spokesman said there were no plans to fully merge the businesses.

National Australia Bank is looking for growth from its UK operation after dropping plans to expand through acquisitions. It was previously seen as a candidate to buy Abbey - now owned by Spain's Banco Santander.