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.