A TOTAL of €44 million has been spent on acquiring sites for the Government’s decentralisation programme in locations where plans to transfer public service offices and State agencies have been postponed.
Nearly 3,100 posts from 10,900 positions earmarked for transfer out of Dublin under the original decentralisation plan have now been relocated to about 40 centres. A further 1,300 posts are set to move under projects under way.
The Government has said decisions on implementing the balance of the decentralisation programme – involving a further 6,000 posts – have been put off pending a review to be carried out next year in the light of developments in the public finances.
However, official briefing documentation drawn up by the Department of Finance states that in the light of the deterioration in the public finances “progress on the majority of the State agencies is not affordable at this time”.
Under the Government’s original decentralisation plan, State agencies accounted for 2,300 of the posts which were earmarked to be transferred. The official briefing paper also reveals that about 2,200 of the 3,100 posts transferred to date have been moved to locations which are outside of towns designated as official “gateways” and “hubs” under the Government’s National Spatial Strategy.
The briefing material, drawn up for secretary general of the Department of Finance Kevin Cardiff last month for his appearance before the Dáil Public Accounts Committee, shows that up until last December €338 million had been spent on property in relation to the decentralisation programme including cost of sites, property acquisitions, fit-outs and rents.
However, more than €350 million has been generated by the Office of Public Works from the disposal of sites owned by the State.
The document states that while the Government has not dropped any locations from the programme, some €44 million has been spent in respect of sites in deferred locations.
The briefing material acknowledges that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation (OECD) and Development in its 2008 report on the public service, “sounded a note of caution in relation to decentralisation” and indicated that a longer-term plan was needed on how the programme would meet the needs of the public.
However, it says that the OECD was “making a general comment and did not examine the decentralisation policy itself”.
The briefing material also contains a section asking whether the inclusion of State agencies in the original decentralisation plan had been a mistake.
However, it goes on to argue: “State agencies represented 2,300 posts, or just over 20 per cent of the programme. Approximately 50 per cent of the overall posts are spread across just four State agencies – Enterprise Ireland (292), Fás (383), Fáilte Ireland (178) and Ordnance Survey Ireland (199). The pace of progress in the State agency part of the programme was particularly slow, with a number of inter-related factors, particularly the difficulties in transferring staff between public service bodies, serving to frustrate progress. However, in light of the deterioration of the public finances, progress on the majority of the State agencies is not affordable at this time”.