Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Question 1433: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the position on the decentralisation of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to Wexford; if a site has been acquired in Wexford; the number of staff who have indicated their willingness to move to Wexford, when the new headquarters will begin construction; the amount of money allocated for this specific project in 2006; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2163/06]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 1437: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the date on which sections within his Department will be transferring to Enniscorthy, County Wexford, as part of the decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40204/05]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 1438: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the date on which sections within his Department will be transferring to New Ross, County Wexford, as part of the decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40205/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take questions Nos. 1433, 1437 and 1438 together.

My Department is co-operating with the Department of Finance, the decentralisation implementation group, and the Office of Public Works to ensure the Government's decentralisation programme is implemented efficiently and effectively. A decentralisation implementation team has been established to oversee the arrangements for the transfer of the Department's Dublin-based staff to four locations in the southeast, including Wexford and New Ross. Implementation plans, setting out the issues to be addressed in implementing the decentralisation programme for this Department, have been submitted to the decentralisation implementation group. These plans are also published on my Department's website at www.environ.ie.

Under the Government's decentralisation programme my Department will transfer its headquarters, comprising some 249 staff, to Wexford town and a unit of 125 staff to New Ross. The indicative dates for the completion of above transfers are the third quarter of 2007 and early 2009, respectively.

At this stage a total of 112 staff within the Civil Service, including my Department, have confirmed their availability to move to Wexford. Thirty four of these are now in the Department and the process of agreeing arrangements for the early transfer of the others to the Department has commenced. The Office of Public Works, which provides the budget for the procurement of office accommodation, is evaluating site options at present. There is no proposal for any part of my Department to transfer to Enniscorthy.