Vol. 542 No. 4
5 Mr. Shatter asked the Minister for Defence the arrangement being made by him for the transfer of the Civil Defence Training School from Dublin to Roscrea, County Tipperary; when such transfer is to take place; the number of instructors and specialist and other staff members who have indicated they will not transfer to Roscrea; and the reason for the proposed transfer. [24756/01]
In the context of the White Paper on Defence, the Government decided to decentralise the Civil Defence branch of my Department to Roscrea. The Office of Public Works, which has responsibility for the provision of official accommodation for Departments, is currently in discussions with the owners of a building in Roscrea. I understand these discussions are ongoing. It is anticipated that the transfer will take place next year. Of the 30 staff serving in the Civil Defence branch, one has indicated a willingness to transfer to Roscrea. I am confident that, prior to relocation, the required number of suitably trained and qualified staff will be in place. In this regard, more than 100 civil servants serving in other Departments have indicated a desire to transfer to my Department for the purpose of working in the Civil Defence branch in Roscrea.
Will the Minister confirm that eight instructors and specialists and 21 other staff currently located in the Civil Defence school in Dublin have indicated that they will not go to Roscrea? Does he agree that Civil Defence has always been of substantial importance but that the work which must now be done in this area has assumed a greater importance and priority as a result of the atrocities committed on 11 September and the current international situation? Will the Minister acknowledge that the only considerations for transferring the Civil Defence school from Dublin to Roscrea are local party political considerations of his own and that this move is not in the national interest, that it is ill-advised and foolish at this time and will result in experienced staff involved in this area leaving it at a time in which their services are very badly needed in the interests of this State?
There is a total of six vacancies in the Civil Defence school, including the chief technical officer, the school principal and two instructor staff. These are vacancies that have occurred in the normal way and we are in the process of filling them, obviously with people who want to serve in a centre in Roscrea. Fine Gael has traditionally been totally against decentralisation. In its last administration, it said there would not be any further decentralisation. This Government has a different view. It is anxious to ensure there is a significant transfer of civil servants to different parts of the country. Roscrea is a very central location – in fact, much more central for the 6,000 units in the Civil Defence than Dublin could ever be.
Will the Minister confirm that the existing vacancies to which he referred are a direct consequence of the announcement of this school being transferred to Roscrea?
No.
Will the Minister identify the national interest, other than his own personal constituency interest, which demands that the school go to Roscrea? Will he clarify what assessment has been undertaken of the impact of the move of the Civil Defence school to Roscrea in the context of members of the community volunteering to participate in Civil Defence work and in going to Roscrea? The Minister should acknowledge that this is nothing but a bit of local party politics designed to benefit him at the next election and that it has nothing to do with the problems of the Civil Defence and the national interest. Will the Minister, in the new circumstances, reconsider the decision announced by him?
I am aware of the desire of the Fine Gael Party to ensure there is no decentralis-
ation. That has been the party's effective policy, as I understand it, from the time it was in Government. I had the opportunity last week to attend the Civil Defence exercises. Since my appointment I have provided additional funds for Civil Defence. Its clothing and gear is of a standard which it could not have visualised previously. There are 6,000 members throughout the country and the administration will be located in Roscrea. The new people who will join and the new technical personnel will ensure that Civil Defence, which will be underpinned by new legislation and more funds, will be a more dynamic resource to deal with whatever problems arise. I am proud of the Civil Defence and I look forward to seeing it grow in strength.
There will be only one person with expertise left out of 30.
