Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 577: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the annual costs incurred by his Department in the implementation of the decentralisation scheme for each of the past four years, broken down between property and non-property costs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35552/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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All aspects of property procurement and disposal in connection with the Decentralisation Programme is a matter for the Office of Public Works. The non-capital costs incurred by my Department to date under the Decentralisation Programme are as follows:

2005 Nil

2006 Nil

2007 Nil

2008 €191,945 non-property expenditure. (This figure includes expenditure on the fitting out of the new building in Athlone which accommodates both decentralised staff plus approximately 100 Department of Education and Science personnel who had been in temporary accommodation on the Athlone campus.) In addition, there are also other indirect costs including staff time and opportunity costs associated with the implementation of the Decentralisation Programme.

Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 578: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the progress made by his Department on implementing the decentralisation scheme, including the number of staff who have moved under the scheme and the property bought or rented outside Dublin under the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35567/08]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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My Department has completed the process of decentralising all sections due to relocate to Athlone and to date, 88 posts have decentralised from my Department to Athlone. The main relocation of posts from Dublin to Mullingar will take place when the new office accommodation in Mullingar is ready for occupation. However in June 2008, my Department utilised existing available accommodation, in its Regional Office in Mullingar, to decentralise 7 posts from Dublin to that location. All aspects of property procurement and disposal in connection with the Decentralisation Programme is a matter for the Office of Public Works (OPW).