Tom Parlon (Laois-Offaly, Progressive Democrats)

He went on at great length about towns with Ministers. Is there a Minister in Longford, Newcastle West, Thomastown, Carrick-on-Shannon, Kilrush, Loughrea or in Portlaoise? I do not believe there is, yet all these towns are in the first phase.

I wish to make it clear that the Government is determined to deliver the full decentralisation package. I think Senator O'Toole said it did not matter how long it would take. Senator Dooley referred to the fact that when the former Minister for Finance, Charlie McCreevy, was trying to motivate Ministers to encourage Departments to move, he mentioned 2007. That should not be a stick with which to beat him. It was an ambitious target and Ministers should have pulled the finger out and motivated their Departments.

Phil Flynn has a tremendous reputation and the people on his committee are all high achievers with expertise in their areas. The criterion used is that this is a voluntary scheme, which the Government has always said. One cannot put a gun to civil servants' heads. Fine Gael, in its last manifesto, said it would decentralise full Departments within a year. I would like to know how that was going to happen.