GLASGOW'S newest multi-million pound office block will turn the screw on rivals by offering some of the city's cheapest rental rates.

And council leader Gordon Matheson was happy to give a helping hand by tightening the final bolt at the landmark St Vincent Plaza.

The £70million block will be able to accommodate 2600 office workers across 11 floors when it opens for business in the spring.

The Plaza will provide 170,000 sq ft of office space, with the developers Abstract (Glasgow) Ltd predicting that rents of £23 per sq ft will be among the cheapest in the city and the rest of the UK.

Councillor Matheson was given a preview and invited to perform the topping out ceremony.

He chatted to workmen at ground level before being taken to the top of the building to tighten the final bolt and shovel the last spadeful of cement.

St Vincent Plaza will sit opposite the new £100m headquarters of ­ScottishPower at the former Strathclyde Regional ­Council HQ and close to the Hilton Glasgow. Mr Matheson said: "St Vincent Plaza is a visible sign of the confidence investors have in Glasgow and our future ­economic health.

"I look forward to this outstanding building being a great success and one which will bring many new jobs to the city."

Abstract's chief executive Mark Glatman said: "St Vincent Plaza aims to attract big name corporates, thus creating more local employment."

The new office block will tower over the neighbouring M8 and the development includes a £1.2m walkway which will link William Street to St Vincent Street.

gordon.thomson@ eveningtimes.co.uk