Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 501: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food the office or unit within her Department and associated unit that is due to be decentralised; the number of posts and staff in tabular form from each unit within her Department and associated agency who have chosen to decentralise with their parent organisation; and the number of people willing to move who have been assigned their new posts. [6675/06]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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All of the Dublin-based units within my Department are due to decentralise to Portlaoise, apart from the Dublin local office in Tallaght. The local office in Cork is due to move to Fermoy and the laboratories in Cork and Limerick are due to move to Macroom. Statistics were released from the central applications facility, CAF, in September 2004 indicated that the following numbers of staff from my Department, other Civil Service Departments and the public service were interested in decentralising to Portlaoise, Fermoy and Macroom:

The Department's decentralisation implementation plan allows for 50 staff to move to Portlaoise in each of the years 2005, 2006 and 2007, with the balance moving in 2008. To the end of January 2006, some 145 people have opted for decentralisation to Portlaoise. Some 90 posts have moved to Portlaoise across a range of areas such as single payment, training and development, accommodation, management services, personnel and information systems. This number includes some CAF applicants that have joined from other Departments. Further moves are planned in 2006 and these are currently being finalised and staff put in place. These staff are being sourced from within my Department and the CAF. Assignments and transfers are made on a phased basis. This allows for appropriate training and skills transfer to take place. It also takes into consideration the business needs of the Department and the need to minimise the risks involved.