Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I outlined the position in my first reply. We are committed to implementing the decentralisation programme but recognise the range of concerns among staff members affected by the programme, namely, those who have already chosen to spend their careers working in provincial locations, those who wish to do so in the future and those who wish to remain in Dublin. We are working to reach an agreement through negotiation in partnership with staff interests which seeks to strike a reasonable balance between these very genuine interests while ensuring the programme is moved forward and, most importantly, that there is no reduction in the high standards of service that the public have a right to expect from the Civil Service.

I am confident that it will be possible to reach agreement on the basis of reasonable compromise and that it will not be necessary to impose a solution. Imposed solutions, by their nature, are measures of last resort and rarely as effective as agreements reached on the basis of goodwill and fair compromise between parties. However, it would be an abdication of the Government's responsibility for us to rule out thinking of what might happen should the talks fail. Given the strong spirit of partnership and public service that has characterised Civil Service industrial relations, I am sure an agreed resolution will be found in the near future. I am confident that, on the basis of our present discussions, we can reach a solution that is acceptable to all.

See this speech in context