Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 8 July 2004
353 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the major factors which led to the particular decentralised location chosen, and the criteria used for selection in respect of each decentralisation move in her Department outlined in the Budget Statement 2004. [21067/04]
View answerA wide range of factors are taken into account and balanced against each other in making the overall selection of locations for Departments and agencies. Those factors include: the location of existing decentralised offices; the desirability of clustering a Department's decentralised units within a region; the importance of respecting the scale and character of locations in their capacity to absorb the number of new jobs involved; the existence of good transport links by road, rail or air; and the general infrastructural capacity in the areas selected.
The new locations for my Department will form a hub in the north west of the country for the provision of services to our customers: Buncrana; Donegal; Sligo; Carrick-on-Shannon. The Department also has a decentralised office in Letterkenny. The Department's headquarters will be based in Drogheda, close to the existing decentralised office in Dundalk.
354 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of positions moved and the number filled on promotion in respect of the most recent decentralisation undertaken by her Department; and the number of follow-on moves which were triggered by the decentralisation. [21085/04]
View answerThe most recent decentralisation programme undertaken by my Department was the relocation of the accounts branch to Dundalk in 2002. A total of 95 posts were relocated to Dundalk under the programme. The only post filled by promotion was that of principal officer.
The remaining posts were filled by the lateral transfer of serving civil servants or by direct recruitment. Some 36 posts were filled by the relocation of staff from within the Department, 44 posts were filled by the redeployment of staff from other Departments and 14 staff were recruited directly for Dundalk.
It is not possible to indicate the number of consequential staff moves necessary in other Departments. However, in my Department, of the 36 staff who relocated to Dundalk, five staff were already serving in accounts branch and, accordingly, there were no consequential vacancies, and six people moved from other areas of the Department and follow-on moves were required.
The remaining 25 were clerical staff recruited for the Dublin offices of the Department during 2001 and 2002 who were interested in relocating to Dundalk. They were assigned directly to the accounts branch in anticipation of the move.
In addition, it is estimated that it was necessary to redeploy some 70 staff from accounts branch to other areas of the Department as vacancies arose during 2001 and 2002.
355 D’fhiafraigh Aengus Ó Snodaigh den Aire Gnóthaí Sóisialacha agus Teaghlaigh cathain a bheidh na chéad státseirbhísigh á lonnú i dTír Chonaill de thoradh ar an gcinneadh Rialtais i leith dílárnú, cá háit sa chontae a lonnófar iad, agus an mbeidh na hoifigí fós i Leitir Ceanainn agus i mBaile Dhún na nGall mar a fógraíodh. [21092/04]
View answerTá an oifig shochair leanaí agus chóireála i Leitir Ceanainn ó 1990-91. Tá sé socraithe go mbeidh na hoifigí dílárnaithe nua i mBun Cranncha agus i mBaile Dhún na nGall.
Tá plean ullmhaithe ag mo Roinn a imlíníonn an t-ord a n-aistreoidh na rannóga atá i gceist go dtí na bailte sin. Tosóidh earcaíocht agus traenáil na ndaoine a bheidh ag aistriú níos déanaí i mbliana, agus tógfar an obair chun cinn chomh luath agus is féidir.
