Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 31 May 2000

Vol. 520 No. 2

Adjournment Debate. - Decentralisation Programme.

Mr. J. O'Keeffe:

I strongly support the intention to decentralise Departments, Government offices and State sponsored bodies which will mean a further 10,000 civil and public service jobs going to the provinces. There is no need to highlight the benefits to Dublin of easing population pressures in the capital and, clearly, a major welcome throughout the country awaits the public servants.

I accept the voluntary nature of the arrangements but when I was a Minister of State there was a huge interest on the part of staff in moving away from Dublin, particularly to attractive provincial locations. There has already been decentralisation to 20 provincial centres in 19 counties but, to date, there has been none to the most attractive location in the country, south west Cork. Three months ago I suggested the decentralisation of a Government office to Bandon, the largest town in south west Cork. Following that proposal, a major submission was prepared and presented by the Bandon Chamber of Commerce. A further major presentation was also prepared by the Dunmanway Employment Initiative and it will shortly be submitted to the Minister for Finance, Deputy McCreevy. Excellent facilities are also available in other west Cork towns.

The title of the Bandon document is "Bandon – The Right Move". Bandon is only 20 miles west of Cork city. A modern vibrant town, it has fantastic attractions as a location. It is convenient, well serviced and offers an attractive quality of life to relocated employees. I can vouch for that because I live there. It is close to Cork city and airport and is easily accessible to traffic from Dublin via the Jack Lynch Tunnel. It is connected to the national communications network, head post office and divisional Garda headquarters. It has everything required to make it attractive.

The local chamber of commerce has identified a landbank of potential development sites. It has also found a number of interested developers and a local organisation is willing to co-ordinate a public-private partnership initiative. Of huge importance is that the rental cost for office space in the Bandon area is approximately £12 per square foot compared with an average of more than £30 per square foot in Dublin. That offers a huge saving to the Government. The town and hinterland of Bandon has a population of more than 16,000 so there is sufficient population to absorb a large departmental office. The case for Bandon has been beautifully and well made in the document submitted to the Minister.

Similarly, the document from Dunmanway makes a strong case. Dunmanway is the geographical centre of west Cork and enjoys a prime central and accessible location. It can offer the availability of existing buildings for office space. There is also a 5.5 acre industrial zoned land bank. The town suffered a recent major loss in the shape of the biggest industrial employer in the town so there will be more than 100,000 welcomes for any office decentralised there. What is particularly important about Dunmanway is the strong community spirit and the vibrant social, sporting and cultural life. Another important asset is the vibrant community organisation, the Dunmanway Employment Initiative, which will be ready to assist in the move to Dunmanway.

While I am not entirely objective, the case for decentralisation to south west Cork is compelling. Hordes of foreign tourists descend on its many towns and villages from Kinsale in the east to Castletownbere in the west. Bandon has filed an impressive document making an unanswerable case, while the Dunmanway document, which is equally impressive, is now on its way. I am offering the Government the best location in Ireland. South west Cork has been overlooked in previous phases of decentralisation. Apart from the justice and equity of its case at this stage, the Government would be blind if it continued to ignore the obvious attractions of Bandon, Dunmanway and other west Cork towns in its current decentralisation programme.

Mr. Walsh:

I thank Deputy O'Keeffe for giving me the opportunity to return to this important issue of decentralisation which, as Deputies will be aware, has been the subject of considerable interest both inside and outside the Houses of the Oireachtas.

Since the budget day announcement, the Minister for Finance has been more than surprised by the interest in a new programme of decentralisation. In terms of correspondence coming into his Department, there has not been a subject which has attracted so much interest in recent months. The Minister for Finance has received representations on behalf of or submissions from more than 90 cities, towns and villages anxious to accommodate a decentralised Department. The Minister and I pay tribute to the many local authorities, chambers of commerce and community associations who have made so many impressive submissions setting out the case for the inclusion in the forthcoming programme of their respective localities.

I know that in this House there are a large number of enthusiastic advocates of the policy of decentralisation, and the Minister for Finance is determined that the new programme will be the most ambitious and successful in the history of the State.

As I am sure Deputies are aware by now, the Minister for Finance is currently engaged in an intensive series of meetings with his Government colleagues and arising from these meetings he will be in a position to bring proposals to Government shortly. It is also his firm intention that the Government will be in a position to take decisions on a new and extensive programme of decentralisation within the next couple of months. The Minister's determination to progress the issue follows on from his previously mentioned budget day announcement of the Government's intention to embark on a new and radical programme of decentralisation with the transfer of the maximum number of public sector jobs from Dublin.

In pursuit of this policy, the Government intends to relocate almost entire Departments or offices and other public bodies to provincial centres. It is intended that the forthcoming programme will, for the first time, involve non-commercial State-sponsored bodies. The Minister for Finance's budget announcement endorses the commitment set out in the reviewed An Action Programme for the Millennium to a policy of balanced regional development and sets as a key priority the channelling of public sector jobs into provincial areas. In developing a new programme the Government has in mind a number of objectives, including the promotion of regional development, the reduction of congestion in Dublin, the establishment of a more even spread of public sector jobs around the country and the procurement of office accommodation at lower cost than in Dublin.

The current programme of decentralisation, which is expected to be completed in the early part of next year, will involve the relocation of more than 4,000 civil servants from Dublin to a large number of provincial locations. The impact of this programme cannot be underestimated given that it involves almost 20 towns and cities throughout the country. Deputy O'Keeffe is not alone in this House in seeing the benefits of decentralisation. I am sure many Members of the House share the view that decentralisation has brought considerable benefits to many communities throughout the country.

Deputies may be surprised to learn that almost 50% of all civil servants are now located outside Dublin and while decentralisation cannot account for all that, it has played a major part and has contributed significantly to a greater geographical spread of Government services. All regions of the country have benefited from the Government's policy on decentralisation and it is the Government's intention that the new programme will maintain that policy. It is obvious that the addition of new jobs to an area, whether through decentralisation or otherwise, gives a positive economic boost to such an area. New jobs result in increased economic growth and better use of existing, and often under-used, local infrastructure.

While we are all conscious of the coverage which the proposals in relation to decentralisation have received recently, particularly in the media, the Minister for Finance wants to express a word of caution against any expectation that a largescale relocation of public servants to provincial locations is imminent. Members of the House will appreciate that considerable planning will be required before this most ambitious programme is commenced. It will be necessary to identify appropriate blocks of work, select and train staff and source suitable accommodation. I say this not to demonstrate any lack of enthusiasm on the part of the Minister for Finance or the Government but simply to emphasise that after decisions are taken it will be some time before staff arrive in their new locations.

To return to the many representations and very worthwhile submissions which the Minister for Finance has received on the subject of decentralisation, I assure those who have been making such representations and presenting such submissions that all these cases will be taken into account by the Government as part of the consultative process which the Minister has initiated. In that context, I assure Deputy O'Keeffe that the case now being made by him for the inclusion of Bandon and other towns such as Kinsale, Clonakilty, Skibbereen. Bantry, Dunmanway, Castletownbere, Schull and so on in the forthcoming programme has been noted and will be fully considered in the context of the process on which the Minister has embarked. However, the Deputy will appreciate that until such time as the Government has had the opportunity to consider all aspects relating to the new programme, it would not be prudent for the Minister for Finance to comment on the likelihood of any particular location featuring in the programme. This is particularly the case given the number of centres anxious to be included. I assure the House of the Minister for Finance's personal commitment to ensuring the successful implementation of this new and radical programme of decentralisation.