Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 11 February 2015
11. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform in the context of the State's improving financial position, if it is an opportune time to review the geographic structure of the civil and public service in consideration of targeted and effective relocation of offices, as such measures would help foster regional economic recovery; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5771/15]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that the Government agreed in November 2011 that the Decentralisation Programme, announced in the December 2003 Budget Statement by the then Minister for Finance, should be cancelled in the light of the budgetary and staffing outlook.
It was also agreed that a review of 22 decentralisation projects should be carried out. Following completion of that review in January 2012, a total of 43 projects had been cancelled, while 50 were maintained, to be managed in the same way as other regionally based offices and Departments. In addition, it was agreed that one project - the Defence Forces in the Curragh should proceed, on a cost effective basis, as soon as budgetary resources permit.
Up to the date of the cancellation of the programme, about a third of the target numbers of staff over 3,400 were decentralised. Consequently, while the decentralised offices account for less than 10% of serving civil service staff, taken together with the pre-existing regional and district offices of Departments the proportion of civil servants working outside Dublin is now just over 50% which highlights the extent to which the geographic distribution of civil service staff supports economic activity across the State.
While there are no plans to introduce a further programme of decentralisation, the Deputy may wish to note that the recently-published Civil Service Renewal Plan includes a commitment to expand career and mobility opportunities for staff across geographic, organisational and sectoral boundaries. The delivery of this action will help ensure that the civil service continues to play its part in ensuring balanced regional development.
