Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 15 Jun 1993

Vol. 432 No. 3

Written Answers. - Decentralisation of the Public Service.

John Bruton

Question:

79 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance if he will give details of the numbers of staff and the Departments involved who have been relocated out of Dublin in each of the years since the programme of decentralisation began in the Civil Service and in the wider public service; and if he will give the numbers of staff and the Departments involved where proposals for further relocation from Dublin have been agreed by Government or put forward for consideration in the coming years.

Liam Burke

Question:

80 Mr. L. Burke asked the Minister for Finance the progress made to date in implementing the plans for the decentralisation of the public services; the areas decentralised to date; the areas to which transfers have taken place; the number of positions transferred to each of these areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Finance (Mr. B. Ahern)

I propose to answer Questions Nos. 79 and 80 together.

Under the Government's decentralisation programme, staff have been transferred out of Dublin on a phased basis over the last four years as follows:

Department/Office	Location	No. of Staff
Defence	Galway	186
Social Welfare	Sligo	369
	Letterkenny	176
Justice	Killarney	116
Agriculture and Food	Cavan	117
Education	Athlone	162
Environment	Ballina	115
Revenue	Ennis	118
	Nenagh	203
Total		1,562

There are proposals for future decentralisations as follows:

Department/Office	Location	No. of Staff
Revenue	Limerick	550
Central Statistics Office	Cork	450
Education	Tullamore	150-200
Agriculture	Portlaoise	150-200
Revenue/Environment	Wexford	150-200
Social Welfare	Longford	200
Marine/Enterprise & Employment	Kilkenny	125-150
Social Welfare/Land Registry	Waterford	150-200
OPW/Revenue	Dundalk	125-150
Health	Roscommon	44
Total		2,094-2,344

The launching of the decentralisation programme in 1987 reflected the Government's belief that the more widespread location of public service employment was a desirable long term objective to help reduce regional imbalances and the pressure on the Dublin region. The Government considered that the concentration of human and material resources in Dublin at the expense of the peripheral areas had effectively deprived the provinces for too long of their development capacity.

I am satisfied that the present programme, when completed in the selected locations, will result in achieving a better regional spread of prosperity and economic activity throughout the country.