Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 16 December 2009
27 Deputy Olivia Mitchell asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the latest developments regarding the proposed decentralisation of his Department to County Mayo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47120/09]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Deputy will be aware that under the decentralisation programme, my Department's headquarters are scheduled to relocate to Charlestown, County Mayo. To date 100 staff have moved to temporary accommodation in Tubbercurry, County Sligo.
In light of budgetary constraints and affordability issues, the Minister for Finance has decided to defer proceeding with permanent accommodation in Charlestown at this time. This location, along with four other deferred projects, will be considered as part of the overall review of the decentralisation programme in 2011.
I call Deputy Ring who has one minute.
You time it, Chairman, the timer will time it. When does the Minister expect——
I ask the Deputy to withdraw that remark.
What remark?
The Deputy made a suggestion that an official in this Chamber was timing it.
You said "he will time it."
I am timing it here and have a clock in front of me. The Deputy made a derogatory remark against a member of staff and I ask him to withdraw it now.
I will not withdraw it now.
Would the Deputy please withdraw it?
I will not withdraw it because I did not make any derogatory remark.
You did.
No, I did not.
You said "he will time it."
You said "he will time it."
I did not.
I said that you had the timer.
I said that I had the time here.
Yes. May I ask the question? When does the Minister expect to make a final decision on decentralisation? Will it ever happen? Is the OPW planning to delay indefinitely? Regardless of the OPW decision, does the Minister have a preferred site? What is the up-to-date position on Kiltimagh and Charlestown? Is the Minister concerned the move will proceed? Are the finances in place?
As the Deputy knows the decision to decentralise was made and the initial proposal was to locate at Knock Airport. The Government proceeded to acquire a site and sought planning permission which was granted by Mayo County Council. A sole person, Mr. Sweetman, who lives here in Dublin, as he is perfectly entitled to do, objected to An Bord Pleanála and in a decision that surprised me, An Bord Pleanála overturned the granting of planning permission. One of the reasons it gave was that there was not enough public transport. I can never get my head around how that could be the case at an airport, but so be it. At the time, back in 2008, the Government considered that decision and as the Deputy is aware the Government very quickly made a decision later in 2008 — I believe it was in October — to acquire a site in Charlestown. A site has been located in Charlestown. Following that a group from Kiltimagh proposed all sorts of buildings for us. That delayed us for another year and on it goes. The Deputy keeps asking me the questions and I keep saying we are looking at it.
I can tell the Deputy today that unfortunately or fortunately, the alternative building in Kiltimagh was also considered by the OPW and was found to be unsuitable, so we have lost a year. Unfortunately, I do not know what mí-ádh is on us because no sooner have we cleared the Kiltimagh proposal off the playing pitch than we have a problem in funding it in 2010 because the OPW's decentralisation capital budget has been cut back. While I have the decision to decentralise to Charlestown and I have a site that has been acquired, owing to all the delays — mostly third-party delays — unfortunately we cannot proceed at this point.
However, I encourage the Deputy to look to his colleague Deputy McGinley, who was rightly very persistent in pursuing me on the decentralisation of Foras na Gaeilge to Gaoth Dobhair. Many times over the years I believe Deputy McGinley thought we would never get there. However, we got the good news recently that this decentralisation is now proceeding and with much persistence and difficulty we are overcoming the problems. No doubt we will also overcome the problems with Charlestown. I am sure the people of Tubbercurry are delighted tonight. There are 91 civil servants located in a building in Tubbercurry and I am told it is doing considerable good for the town.
Is the Minister saying Kiltimagh is off the pitch and that he does not have funding to do anything with the site he has in Charlestown?
The Deputy has got it in one. If Kiltimagh had not been on the pitch, we would have the building half built by now.
So there is no decentralisation.
It is worth going back over the record. Decentralisation is about people. We promised that 140 staff would go to Knock Airport. We decentralised 100 to Tubbercurry and we have 91 located there. We promised ten staff to the Department's office in Na Forbacha and that decentralisation is complete. We promised 40 staff of Pobail to Clifden. We had 25 there and I believe the number is now 20. We promised 30 staff of Foras na Gaeilge to Gaoth Dobhair. That is a North-South body with a lot of difficulties. There are five definites and eight possibles; depending on who gets the job, up to 13 will be going there. We have proceeded with all elements of decentralisation promised in 2003, but what we have not got is a permanent building.
On a point of order, I wish to put on the record that everybody here this evening went over their time and the Acting Chairman had no problem with it. The only one with whom he had a problem was me. It was the same in the committee.
I am sorry; what did the Deputy say?
I said that the Acting Chairman had no problem with anyone else going over their time this evening. He let the two Ministers and all the other speakers exceed their time. The only person with whom he had a problem, in terms of timekeeping, was me.
I disagree with the Deputy.
Of course the Acting Chairman disagrees. He did the same in the committee, but we had a great committee until they took him out of the Chair.
Written Answers follow Adjournment Debate.
