Vol. 576 No. 5
222 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance the present location of operators, the form of tenure and annual rental cost of each of the Government operations which are being decentralised; when the lease was last renewed; and the balance of time left in the current lease. [30162/03]
The information requested by the Deputy forms a significant body of work. It is being actively compiled. A number of the operations being decentralised do not come under the remit of the Commissioners of Public Works and this information will have to be obtained from the relevant agencies. The information will be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as it is available.
223 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance if the Office of Public Works will fund the necessary property acquisitions for decentralisation from the capital envelope 2004-08; and his estimate of the annual capital requirement in each year for that purpose. [30163/03]
An extra capital allocation of €20 million is included in the Department of Finance Vote for 2004 to meet upfront investment required. Any capital funding requirements for future years will be dealt with within the five-year capital allocation framework recently approved by the Government. The overall objective will be to ensure that property acquired at regional level is matched over time in cost terms by the disposal of surplus property in Dublin, whether held on lease or otherwise.
224 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance the estimated capital cost of new buildings to be provided in each of the 53 centres designated for decentralisation; and his policy for funding the cost of this, distinguishing between purchase and leasing and other mechanisms. [30164/03]
An extra capital allocation of €20 million is included in the Department of Finance Vote for 2004 to meet upfront investment required. Any capital funding requirements for future years will be dealt with within the five-year capital allocation framework recently approved by the Government. The overall objective will be to ensure that property acquired at regional level is matched over time in cost terms by the disposal of surplus property in Dublin, whether held on lease or otherwise.
225 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance the number of the locations chosen for decentralisation which were selected as hubs or gateways in the spatial strategy; and the number of jobs to be allocated in each case. [30165/03]
The decentralisation programme takes account of the national spatial strategy by locating 2,650 of the 10,300 jobs to locations identified in the strategy as gateways or hubs. The attached table sets out the locations of the 2,650 jobs. Some 2,800 civil servants work in existing decentralised offices in gateways or hubs, excluding the cities of Dublin, Cork and Galway. Other public servants also work in these locations. The spatial strategy recognised that balanced regional development is not all about gateways and hubs. It identified the need to strengthen the county town and large town structure and the need for a renewed emphasis on the potential of the small town and village structure. Virtually all of the locations included in the programme are mentioned in section 4 of the spatial strategy, which outlines how each region will participate in the strategy.
|
Location |
Hub |
Gateway |
|
Athlone |
145 |
|
|
Cavan |
425 |
|
|
Limerick |
130 |
|
|
Killarney |
165 |
|
|
Kilkenny |
105 |
|
|
Mallow |
200 |
|
|
Monaghan |
25 |
|
|
Mullingar |
300 |
|
|
Shannon |
400 |
|
|
Sligo |
100 |
|
|
Tullamore |
130 |
|
|
Waterford |
200 |
|
|
Wexford |
325 |
|
|
Total |
1,050 |
1,600 |
