Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)
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Question 149: To ask the Minister for Finance the latest information available from the central applications facility in respect of applications from civil servants and other public servants currently located in Dublin who wish to transfer to new locations outside of Dublin under the Government's decentralisation programme; the way in which this compares with the Government target of 10,300; if agreement has been reached with all public service unions regarding promotional opportunities for those who chose to move and those who opted to remain where they are; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19264/06]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The latest figures from the Central Applications Facility show there is substantial interest in the programme. To date there have been over 10,600 applications made to the Central Applications Facility. Over 9,000 of the applications are from civil servants and over 1,000 are from public servants. Over 50% of the applications are from Dublin based staff.

In the civil service, progress has been made in discussions with the general service unions on promotion arrangements. Discussions are ongoing with the unions representing the professional and technical grades in the civil service. I am hopeful this and other decentralisation issues arising in the state agency sector can be discussed with the relevant unions with a view to arriving at arrangements which support the decentralisation process while also meeting the concerns of staff. In the meantime, practices in decentralising organisations relating to recruitment, promotion, etc. must take account of the reality of decentralisation.