Seán Conlan (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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168. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the reason her Department has failed and refused to engage in any meaningful process with the property owners (details supplied) in Ballybay, County Monaghan, who have made their town centre premises available to her Department as an alternative location for her departmental office, which is currently located at Main Street, Ballybay; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10117/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The OPW is the exclusive procurer of office accommodation for the civil service and the sole authority for allocating space to the civil service. This Department would not normally make contact with the landlords or potential property owners. Following a meeting that was held on the 3/12/2014 between Minister Kevin Humphreys and a delegation from County Monaghan representing the interests of Ballybay, a number of property options in Ballybay were discussed with a view to retaining the Department’s offices in the town. It was agreed that the Department would ask the OPW to refrain from signing a lease for a premises in Monaghan Town in order to allow the representatives and the officials to put forward some potential alternatives in Ballybay.

All four submissions received (via Monaghan County Council) were forwarded from the Department to the OPW for consideration. All of the submissions were reviewed by the OPW but unfortunately were not deemed to be viable.