Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 127: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the extent to which his Department has complied with the Government's decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4430/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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My Department has been making good progress in the relocation of the required 250 posts to Carlow under the Government's Decentralisation Programme. The following business units/Offices of my Department are earmarked for decentralisation:

Companies Registration Office/Registry of Friendly Societies

National Employment Rights Authority (NERA)

Work Permits

Redundancy Payments Section

Insolvency Payments Section

Officials of my Department, in consultation with the Department of Finance and the OPW, as well as decentralising staff and Business Units opened an advance office in Carlow on July 30 2007. The number of posts in this decentralised advance office is 100. With regard to the property side of the Department's move, the OPW completed the purchase of a site in Carlow town centre for the construction of my Department's permanent office in Carlow. My colleague Minister of State Noel Ahern TD, announced on 13 December 2007 that the OPW has invited The Macquarie Partnership to become the 'Successful Tenderer' in respect of this decentralisation project. This forms part of a major PPP project, which also involves the provision of office accommodation for the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in Portlaoise and the Department of Education and Science in Mullingar. I am hopeful, subject to no planning issues arising, that the construction of the permanent office will be completed in late 2009.