Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

The Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism is unable to be with us. As the Members of the Seanad will be aware, Fáilte Ireland is one of three State bodies under the aegis of the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism designated for relocation under the Government's decentralisation programme. The announcement was made in the context of the 2004 budget, which identified the town of Mallow as the location for the transfer of Fáilte Ireland. However, unlike the Department of Arts, Sports and Tourism, which is scheduled to relocate to Killarney in the last quarter of 2008, Fáilte Ireland was not designated as an early mover by the decentralisation implementation group, DIG, that was appointed by the Government to oversee the decentralisation process.

Even so, Fáilte Ireland prepared a decentralisation implementation plan in 2004, which was made available to all staff, and which it kept under review. It is working on a reiteration of this plan and is pursuing the matter of the acquisition of a suitable site in Mallow with the Office of Public Works.

Some 86 applications to transfer to Mallow with Fáilte Ireland have been received under the central applications facility. Of this number, 74 are civil servants and 12 are public servants. There are no internal applications. The latest report from the DIG, chaired by Mr. Finbar Flood, concluded that the implementation arrangements for the decentralisation programme were generally progressing well, although it was concerned at the rate of progress in the State agencies. The Government has accepted the recommendations in the latest DIG report and has reaffirmed its commitment to the full implementation of the decentralisation programme as provided in the programme for Government. The Government has also noted that added impetus needs to be given by all Ministers to the implementation of the programme for respective Departments and State bodies.

The Tánaiste and Minister for Finance has acknowledged the remaining challenges identified by the DIG and has confirmed that his Department and the wider management of the public service will continue to work closely with staff representatives to seek appropriate solutions to address the concerns of the professional and technical staff employed in the State agencies while also ensuring the delivery of the Government programme.

The Minister asked the chairmen of the agencies under the remit of his Department to renew the drive to make progress on the transfer under the decentralisation programme. This includes the relocation of Fáilte Ireland to Mallow, the Sports Council to Killarney and the Arts Council to Kilkenny. It is expected that the Civil Service elements of the current programme will be substantially completed by the end of 2009. The Department of Arts, Sports and Tourism is expected to have relocated to Killarney by the end of next year. Killarney has proven to be a popular location and has been oversubscribed at most grade levels. Already, 70 members of staff of the Department have transferred to temporary premises in Fossa, Killarney, in two phases. The permanent accommodation for the new headquarters of Department is under construction on New Road, Killarney. The building is expected to be ready for occupation by the last quarter of 2008.

The Government expects that significant progress in its decentralisation programme will be made by State bodies, including those under the aegis of the Department, during the lifetime of this Government. The Minister has recently written to the chairmen of the three agencies, including Fáilte Ireland, asking them to accord priority to the task of the transfer of their organisations. He is aware that there are certain difficult issues to deal with but I know the Department of Finance is working to resolve issues such as the redeployment of staff in agencies who have not volunteered for transfer. The Department's officials are available to assist the agencies in any way possible and are meeting representatives of the three agencies to discuss how best to make progress in respect of the relocation of the agencies to their designated locations. Furthermore, the decentralisation implementation group has invited representatives of the Department to accompany the chief executive officers of the three agencies to a meeting to be held later this month to discuss the progress in respect of the decentralisation of the agencies.