Vol. 431 No. 1
23 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for the Environment if he will give a breakdown of the total cost involved to date for his Department under the Government's current programme of decentralisation; if he will clarify the costs and relevant payments to personnel with regard to the relocation; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
To permit the decentralisation of sections of my Department to Ballina in 1989, arrangements for the construction of new offices were made by the Office of Public Works. The main items of expenditure which fell on my Department's Vote related to furniture, fittings and telecommunications. These costs amounted to £372,000 but this total includes expenditure on items which would otherwise have arisen in Dublin. Other costs which arose included the transportation of files, site security and miscellaneous supplies; these amounted to £52,000 in all.
Special payments amounting to £43,000 were made to staff who were temporarily relocated in Dublin for training purposes before the move to Ballina. Some additional costs also arose in respect of overtime directly attributable to decentralisation but it would not be practicable at this stage to compute the amounts involved without an inordinate commitment of staff time and resources. No removal expenses were paid to staff who took up duty in Ballina.
