Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 350: To ask the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism the number of civil servants based in Dublin who have applied for decentralisation, who have been transferred to their decentralising post and are actually in position in the decentralised location outside of Dublin; and the locations and the number of civil servants transferred from a Dublin post who are at such locations. [24426/07]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 351: To ask the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism the number of civil servants and other public servants who have relocated to locations outside of Dublin under the Government's decentralisation programme; the estimated number of each category who will have relocated by the end of 2007; if he will break each set of figures down in terms of those who are relocating from Dublin and relocating from elsewhere; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24440/07]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 350 and 351 together.

Under the Central Application facility, 82 civil servants based in Dublin applied for decentralisation with my Department to Killarney. The number who have been transferred to their decentralised posts and are in position in Fossa, Killarney is 69. Of these, the number of civil servants who have transferred from Dublin is 24. No public servants in the agencies under the aegis of my Department who are scheduled to decentralise will have transferred by the end of 2007. The agencies in question are the Irish Sports Council, Fáilte Ireland and the Arts Council and the designated locations are Killarney, Mallow and Kilkenny, respectively.

While these bodies have not been identified as "early movers", the agencies have all prepared decentralisation implementation plans and the Office of Public Works is actively seeking suitable locations for them in the towns to which it is proposed they will transfer. My Department is keeping the situation under continuous review and requires the agencies to report progress on a regular basis.