Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

Gabhaim mo bhuíochas dhuit, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, as deis a thabhairt dom a chur in iúl don Dáil agus an Teachta Donal Moynihan cad atá ag dul ar aghaidh ag an mbomaite i Maigh Chromtha.

The construction of a laboratory complex in Macroom is part of the Government's decentralisation programme. It involves the rationalisation of the laboratories currently located in the Munster region into one new laboratory complex in Macroom. These laboratories consist of a dairy science laboratory, a regional veterinary laboratory and a brucellosis laboratory on Model Farm Road, Cork, a dairy science laboratory on Killeely Road, Limerick and a regional veterinary laboratory in Knockalisheen, Limerick.

Although these laboratory facilities were adequate for their time, the technology, regulatory and testing requirements etc. have changed significantly since they were built. The Department considers that building a new state-of-the-art facility on a greenfield site will allow it to amalgamate the two existing laboratories in Limerick and the three in Cork into a single efficient and modern complex which will allow the Department to continue to meet its commitments to food safety into the future, allow the laboratories to achieve accreditation status which is essential if they are to continue to carry out their work, facilitate compliance with EU regulation, allow the achievement of efficiencies and align the Department's facilities to the changing structure of the agriculture and food sector.

Many factors favour the new proposals, such as the fact that little investment has been made in the Munster laboratories in the past decade. Moreover, the laboratories are not accredited and updating them to achieve accreditation status would be expensive. In addition, the Department's laboratory operations are subject to many EU regulations and accreditation requirements and it is necessary for them to have the appropriate accreditation status to be allowed to continue their work.

A Government decision taken on 28 December 2003 agreed to allocate the Model Farm Road site to the affordable housing initiative. The Government's decentralisation programme committed the Department of Agriculture and Food to relocate 70 staff members to Macroom.

The decentralisation implementation group, DIG, report of June 2005 provided for an indicative construction start of the end of 2007 for Macroom, with an indicative completion time of early 2009. The Department of Agriculture and Food has forwarded an accommodation brief for the Macroom laboratory to the Office of Public Works. The brief outlines the requirements for office staff, laboratories, visitor areas and general service areas for the new laboratory complex. Given the complexities of the facility, that brief is preliminary and will be adjusted as specific requirements are finalised. Communication between my Department and the Office of Public Works regarding the brief is ongoing. This preliminary brief will, however, allow the Office of Public Works to source a site for the facility. The selection of the site or property and the completion of the development will be a matter for the Office of Public Works, which will submit an application for planning permission in duecourse.

As with decentralisation generally, the relocation of staff from their current location to the new complex in Macroom is voluntary. Human resource and industrial relations issues relating to decentralisation are dealt with centrally by the Department of Finance. It has recently begun discussions with the staff associations of professional and technical civil servants. My Department has indicated to the Department of Finance that as well as dealing with the issue of specialised staff who wish to remain in Dublin after decentralisation, any staff who do not want to move from the existing laboratories in Cork and Limerick must be considered.

I will keep the Deputy updated and will apprise him of progress in the matter.

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