Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 117: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of staff in his Department and its agencies currently based in offices rented by, rather than owned by, the State; the expenditure in rent for these offices; if it is intended that all these staff will be transferred to properties owned by the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8330/07]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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A total of 827 staff in my Department are located in offices rented by the Office of Public Works (OPW). The expenditure in rent is a matter for the OPW.

Following the completion of the Decentralisation Programme in 2009, the accommodation needs of the Department will be reviewed in conjunction with the OPW.

The position regarding the agencies is as follows:

Irish Auditing and Accounting Authority (IAASA) — 7 staff currently occupy premises leased by OPW. The rent is €119,163 p.a. There are no proposals to relocate the staff to other premises.

Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) — 85 staff currently occupy premises leased by OPW. There are no proposals to relocate the staff to other premises.

Shannon Free Airport Development Co. — 17 Staff are based in rented accommodation at a rent of €110,892 pa and 20 Tourist information staff in other premises at rent of €92,100 pa. There are no plans to relocate these staff.

County Enterprise Boards — 146 staff are based in offices rented by the State at a total rent of €700,000 pa. There are no plans to relocate these staff.

Enterprise Ireland — 3 of the 4 Enterprise Ireland premises are rented the staff allocation of these is 133, 49 and 45 at a total rent of €3.1m. All 4 locations are due to move to East Point in the near future. Rental costs for these premises is envisaged at €3.1 million approximately.

Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) — 39 staff of SFI are based in Wilton House and pay rent to Forfas who lease the building. The rent was €323,750 in 2006. There are no plans at present to relocate the staff of SFI.

National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) — 15 staff (from a total of 162) occupy short-term premises in Limerick. The monthly rent for these premises is €7,300. These staff are due to relocate to the permanent renovated offices on completion of construction work in May 2007.

Health and Safety Authority (HSA) — All 185 staff of the HSA operate from rented accommodation, 3 from the OPW (in Sligo, Waterford and Cork) and the remaining 6 from private landlords. The annual rent for these premises is as follows: Dublin — €780,197, Athlone — €15,300, Cahir — €26,318 (document storage, no staff), Galway — €24,139, Kilkenny — €77,138, Limerick — €430,872. There are no plans to relocate the staff of the HSA to State owned premises.

FÁS — The total amount of expenditure in rent on Offices rented by FÁS in 2006 was €8.9m. This is broadly made up of Head Office — €2.4m, Employment Service/Community Service Offices — €3.1m and Training Facilities — €3.4m. Figures in relation to the numbers of staff in the rented offices throughout the country are not readily available. These will be collated and forwarded to the Deputy.

The staff in Head Office are due to decentralise to Birr Co. Offaly in 2009. No decision has been made in relation to the funding of this office.

Forfas/IDA Ireland — The rent for space occupied by Forfas and IDA Ireland in Wilton Park House, Dublin is €2,030,000 and €2,126,000 respectively.