Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

Three principal development specialists serve in Irish Aid headquarters in Dublin, none of whom has applied to decentralise to Limerick. There are 12 senior development specialists in Irish Aid headquarters, none of whom has applied to decentralise to Limerick. Two senior development specialists originally applied to decentralise to Limerick but subsequently withdrew their applications. There are nine development specialist posts in headquarters and five development specialists are scheduled to decentralise, of whom four commenced employment since the announcement of the decentralisation programme in December 2003 and one applied via the central applications facility.

A Labour Court case is ongoing regarding the terms and conditions under which technical grades are employed in various areas of the public service, including the specialists employed by Irish Aid. Technical staff employed by Departments and offices, including specialists and other fixed-term workers employed in Irish Aid, brought cases to the Rights Commissioner under the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003. The case, which involves complex legal issues, has been referred to the European Court of First Instance.

Some of the issues involved in the decentralisation of Irish Aid to Limerick have, therefore, a wider Civil Service dimension and must be resolved at central level. Discussions are ongoing with representatives of the specialists, their union — IMPACT — and the Department of Finance about the issues involved.

Decentralisation is a Government decision and the Government is committed to moving ahead with its implementation. At present 37 posts in the directorate are filled by officers who have signalled their intention to decentralise to Limerick. In addition, 15 officers, either from elsewhere in the Department or from other Departments, are expected to take up duty at Irish Aid headquarters in the next three months. A further six officers serving elsewhere in the Department, mostly abroad, have also expressed an interest in decentralising to Limerick. This means that a total of 58 or 47% of the 124 posts advertised on the central applications facility, CAF, will be in the Department by autumn of this year.

It is planned to have most of the senior management team for Limerick in place by the third quarter of 2006. The director general of Irish Aid has already indicated that he will decentralise to Limerick. Two counsellors are now in place in the directorate, both of whom have volunteered to go to Limerick and were recruited via the central applications facility. A third counsellor will take up duty this summer on return from a posting abroad. Two others recruited via the CAF are expected to take up duty in early July and will move to Limerick. The changeover of the senior management team, as in other grades, is being implemented in a planned and careful way so as to minimise disruption to the business of the directorate. While there are challenges ahead, management and staff are working effectively together to maintain the quality and integrity of the Irish Aid programme. I hope a greater number of specialists will, in time, volunteer to decentralise to Limerick.

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