Paul McGrath
Ceist:64 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Finance if he intends to use budget 2005 to make further announcements on decentralisation. [29917/04]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 23 November 2004
Ceisteanna (15)
Freagraí ó Béal (16 píosaí cainte)
Budget 2005 will be presented to the Dáil and published on Wednesday, 1 December. As the Deputy knows, it is not the usual practice to speculate in advance of the annual budget on what it will contain. I do not propose to deviate from this practice.
Will the Minister comment on the fact that he has not included any figure for decentralisation in the Estimates for 2005? Was this an oversight or the deliberate policy of the Minister? The Minister of State responsible for decentralisation has already acquired eight facilities for decentralisation throughout the country. The Minister's predecessor, Deputy McCreevy, in last year's budget stated that no deals could be entered into until a corresponding building or property in Dublin was disposed of. With regard to the eight properties which have been acquired and the Departments which will use them, will the Minister outline the matching properties which have been disposed of in Dublin city to comply with the former Minister's budget statement of 2004?
I cannot refer to my predecessor's reference to the question of corresponding buildings. The issue of buildings is one which my colleague is dealing with in conjunction with the Office of Public Works. With regard to the non-involvement of decentralisation costs or a provision for next year, these will arise in the multi-annual Estimates 2005-2009 which will be published with the budget. They were not included in the previous multi-annual envelope.
Will the Minister forward to me the information on the properties?
I will. The properties are already in the process of being disposed of.
I understand the Minister lives in Parlon country. Will the Minister speculate as to whether there will be signs next week in Parlon country reiterating the Minister of State's coup last year in regard to decentralisation? Specifically, is the proposal to decentralise certain public bodies, such as the IDA, still on track or will it be held back until such time as agreement can be reached with the staff in those organisations?
The only signs of a political nature I expect to see next week are those asking where the Labour Party is in that area, a question which is often asked of me in my constituency. Regarding the question of the IDA, there will be ongoing consultations with staff in regard to ensuring a successful roll-out of this programme.
The Minister was probably in the House some three weeks ago when the Tánaiste indicated that an announcement on decentralisation was due within a day or two days at most. What has happened to that announcement? Is it being held back for the budget, as would appear to be the case? What is the Minister saying about the multi-annual envelope? The Minister of State kindly told the Joint Committee on Finance and the Public Service it would cost €800 million to accommodate the new staff and that proceeds from sales would be €400 million. Will we see a multi-annual spread of these costs published with the budget?
Decentralisation costs were not part of the 2004-2008 five year multi-annual envelope because they had not been assessed at that time. Obviously, the Office of Public Works has to take account of those costs going forward.
Are they built into the 2005 Estimates?
The Deputy will discover on budget day what is built into the 2005 Estimates. On the other question, these are matters discussed by Government which I am sure will be announced in due course.
The Minister seems to accept the €800 million figure given by the Minister of State, Deputy Parlon, to the Joint Committee on Finance and Public Service in regard to the cost of physically moving to centres throughout the country. The Minister of State admitted this did not include ancillary costs, such as providing services like child care, and did not cover additional current expenditure such as logistical costs or the cost of travel to and from the secretariat in Dublin and the new locations of many of the agencies, wherever they will be. Have the figures been researched and can the Minister estimate what the likely costs will be in a year?
I have no idea what those costs, if any, will be. However, I am sure the Deputy will welcome the investment these funds represent.
I would welcome the figures.
On the last occasion we addressed this sequence of questions, the Minister indicated that the calculation was that some 4,813 Dublin based civil servants had applied to participate in the proposed relocation or decentralisation scheme. Has there been any advance on that figure in regard to Dublin based civil servants seeking to move from the city to other rural locations? Mindful of the words of the former Minister, Deputy McCreevy, when he stated that the prospect of a hanging concentrates the mind wonderfully, does the Minister believe the deadline of the next general election is unlikely to be met in the context of the announcement made in last year's budget? Would the Minister consider a changed proposal that might have a more realistic target date and would allow time to consider the proposed locations and for civil servants to properly plan for the advent of such a move?
The Government's policy on decentralisation is proceeding as planned. Despite many, such as the Deputy, claiming this or that will not happen, progress is constantly being made by the implementation group. Some 3,711 Dublin based civil servants are interested in moving to new locations; that figure was 2,195 in July.