Robert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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357. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide a breakdown of the cost per Civil Service employee of office space; and the way this compares to similar figures in the private sector. [46371/13]

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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The Commissioners of Public Works' office estate consists of a very diverse array of buildings ranging from National Cultural Institutions to Garda Stations, to the State Laboratory. All provide accommodation to a wide range of employees serving a variety of public and non-public functions, and within that estate there is a wide range of accommodation types. Office accommodation is located in a mix of first, second and third generation buildings which, due to their design can provide varying degrees of efficiency in terms of usage. Heritage and protected structures also pose unique challenges in terms of achieving the most efficient use of space.

Given the current mix of space types and uses, it is not possible to provide meaningful figures for comparison purposes.

Robert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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358. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide figures for the past three years for which data are available of the occupancy rate of property owned by Departments. [46372/13]

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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The Commissioners of Public Works' owned estate consists of a wide variety of properties which serve a variety of functions, ranging through office space, public offices, museum and gallery space, heritage properties open to the public, Garda Stations etc. These properties are actively managed by the Commissioners to ensure optimal occupancy at all times.

At present, three buildings classified as office accommodation are unoccupied, a small number of properties such as former customs posts are unoccupied and in addition, there are approximately 130 recently closed Garda Stations. The Commissioners are in the process of disposing of such former Stations to other State bodies, selling them on the open market, or allocating them to community groups.