Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 10 Dec 2003

Vol. 576 No. 6

Written Answers. - Decentralisation Programme.

Eamon Gilmore

Ceist:

270 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the staff or staff representatives in her Department or boards or agencies under the aegis of her Department, which had been consulted in regard to the proposals on decentralisation set out in the budget statement of the Minister for Finance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30293/03]

Eamon Gilmore

Ceist:

271 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the selection process used to decide on each such location in respect of each location identified in Phase 1, 2 and 3 of the proposed programme of decentralisation set out in the Budget Statement of the Minister for Finance, in respect of her Department, or boards or agencies under the aegis of her Department; the other locations that were considered; the criteria which were used to evaluate different possible locations; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30308/03]

Eamon Gilmore

Ceist:

272 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the functions or sections of her Department, or boards or agencies under the aegis of her Department, it is proposed to decentralise in respect of each location identified in Phase 1,2 and 3 of the proposed programme of decentralisation set out in the Budget Statement of the Minister for Finance; the grades and numbers of staff who will be transferred; the estimated total payroll costs of those staff; the size of the office space that will be required for their accommodation; the inquiries which have been made to date regarding availability of office space at each such location; the estimated cost of such office space; the estimated total costs of the decentralisation programme. [30323/03]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mary Coughlan):

I propose to take Questions Nos. 270 to 272, inclusive, together.

A major decentralisation programme for the Civil Service was announced on budget day, 3 December 2003. It is intended that a significant proportion of the programme will be completed over the next three years. The details of the decentralisation programme for my Department and the agencies under its aegis, as announced in the budget, are as follows:

Location	Target Numberof Staff
Drogheda (Department HQ)	300
Donegal	230
Carrick-on-Shannon	225
Buncrana	120
Sligo	100
To be decided (Department IT)	225
Carrickmacross (Comhairle)	85
Monaghan (Combat Poverty Agency)	25
Total	1,310

Arrangements are being put in place in my Department to implement the programme within the organisation. My Department will report on a regular basis to the central implementation committee which is being set up and which will report, in turn, to the special Cabinet sub-committee to oversee the programme across the Civil Service.

At this stage, the details about the budget, timetable and phasing of the transfer of the staff and functions concerned have not been worked out. The question of the provision of premises in the locations in question will be managed by the Office of Public Works.

As stated by the Minister for Finance, a wide range of factors were taken into account in selecting the locations that have been chosen for the overall decentralisation programme. These include the need to achieve a fit with the national spatial strategy, in terms of its gateways, hubs and their respective catchments; 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 terms of their capacity to absorb the number of new jobs involved; the existence of good transport links – by road, rail and/or air – and the general infrastructural capacity in the areas selected.

With regard to the consultation process, the decentralisation programme was a key commitment in the Programme for Government. Consultation with staff interests will now take place in my Department and in the agencies about implementation issues. Any public service wide issues will be addressed under the auspices of the public service monitoring group provided for in Sustaining Progress.

The decentralisation will be implemented on a voluntary basis and no redundancies will arise from it. This programme of decentralisation will involve major change for my Department and a key objective will be to ensure that it is implemented in a planned way and with due regard to the effects on staff and the need to maintain a high standard of service.

Denis Naughten

Ceist:

273 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the legislation required to allow for decentralisation of any section of her Department; the section involved; the legislation which must be amended; the timetable for the publication of the legislation. [30353/03]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mary Coughlan):

The proposed decentralisation of my Department, as announced by the Minster for Finance in his Budget Statement on Wednesday, 3 December 2003, will not require any amendments to social welfare legislation.