Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)

I thank Deputy Flynn for raising this matter. On 15 July 2009, the Government approved a plan for a reorganisation of the Department's local office network. The plan involves reducing from 57 to 16 the number of offices from which the Department will operate district veterinary, forestry and agricultural environment and structures support services in the future. This plan is being implemented in close association with Teagasc and will result in shared services between both organisations wherever practicable.

The reorganisation of the Department over the past four years has yielded significant savings. Since early 2005, the Department has reduced its staff numbers by 700, including the transfer of 400 staff to other Departments, mainly the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform for the operation of the PULSE system in Castlebar and local offices of the Department of Social and Family Affairs and other Departments. In addition, a further 600 staff were redeployed internally to new and expanding work areas, including the single payment scheme and the implementation of new environmental, food safety and animal health controls required by the EU. These savings reflect changes in the Department's work practices, improved business processes, the greater use of computerisation and the wind-up of livestock offices, as well as changes arising from CAP reform.

This plan is an important phase in the ongoing reorganisation of the Department, building on our significant investment in information technology, our success in disease eradication and taking account of the changes arising from CAP reform, the continued implementation of the Department's decentralisation plan, the findings of the organisational review programme and the objectives set out in the Government's Transforming Public Services programme. The new structure is more coherent with national policy for customer service delivery across the public sector and will provide for an enhanced service level to the farming community and the wider agrifood sector, as well as a cost-effective service for the taxpayer.

The aim of this reorganisation is to rationalise the overall number of locations across the country to facilitate the more efficient management of schemes, services and disease levels. In doing so it will provide an improved customer service in each region of the country while at the same time reducing the cost of delivering the services provided for the Department's many customers and stakeholders. In addition, the new regional structure will facilitate the retention of the appropriate number of staff required in each location while at the same time maintaining a very high quality of services across the country.

This decision, when fully implemented, will result in savings in the Department's running costs of some €30 million annually and the reduction of over 400 staff. By rationalising our local office network we can improve services to our clients by concentrating the remaining staff resources of approximately 1,000 people at the newly developed centres. This initiative is part of a continuous process of modernisation of the Department. The various staff associations are being consulted on the redeployment of staff within the Department and to other Departments. I express my appreciation to the staff in our local offices for their contribution to the work of the Department over the years.

I understand that Teagasc is currently engaged in a major change programme which encompasses management structures, work practices, research, education and programme prioritisation, administrative efficiencies, technology transfer and service delivery methodologies. The development of this change programme has caused Teagasc to take a detailed look at its infrastructure and in particular at its network of centres and advisory offices. Phase one of this change programme was approved by the Teagasc authority in March 2009 and the closure of 18 advisory offices based on a set of agreed criteria was approved. Castlebar was one of the offices approved for closure in phase one. Teagasc does not have any shared service arrangement, either formal or informal, with the Department in Castlebar.

I understand from Teagasc that the criteria which identified the Castlebar office for closure included the rental fee but, more important, focused on the relative importance of Castlebar as a delivery centre for Teagasc activities in County Mayo. In line with Government policy Teagasc proactively engaged with the Department in identifying suitable locations for shared services which would be mutually beneficial arid six suitable locations have been identified.

Castlebar is not among those locations as it would not be strategically viable for Teagasc and would put at risk a very important location in Westport where Teagasc provides a wide range of knowledge transfer and advisory services to the hill areas and the islands. It has a strong advisory presence, a large client base, a very significant number of discussion and producer groups and rural development initiatives, including direct selling of hill lamb.

See this speech in context