Decentralisation plan threatens Government efficiency, warns expert

THE controversial decentralisation plan threatens the future well-being of Government in this country, one of Ireland’s leading academics claimed yesterday.

The head of one Government department also disclosed yesterday that it envisages its decentralisation plan will take five years to implement, rather than the three-year period set by the Government as its deadline.

Ed Walsh, the former President of the University of Limerick, said the plan would fragment the Government into nine components, adding this would have grave implications for cohesive government.

Dr Walsh, one of three academics who addressed the Oireachtas Finance Committee, said it would be better to relocate all Government departments to one location outside Dublin as has happened in Malaysia, Korea and Japan.

Denying that technology and instant communications would facilitate the move of 10,300 civil servants outside Dublin, Dr Walsh said that face-to-face interaction was absolutely necessary.

“The Taoiseach did not achieve his wonderful success with the European Constitution by email,” Dr Walsh said.

His views were strongly echoed by UCD Professor of Planning, Michael Bannon. He said the programme would actually result in further expansion of the greater Dublin area. He based his view on the fact that many of the chosen locations are close to Dublin.

He added that it was “shocking” that there was no background documentation about the plan and how it was arrived at.

The third academic, Helmut van der Kamp from the Dublin Institute of Technology, took a different view.

He said there were opportunities for “clustering” the relocating departments with existing agencies: for example the Department of the Environment with the EPA in Wexford, and the new Garda HQ in Thurles with the Garda training college in Templemore.

Department of Social and Family Affairs director general Breda Lacey told the committee that her department had submitted a five-year plan to the implementation committee.

She said this was because of the numbers involved, with 1,310 staff (or 20% of all civil servants being relocated) moving to seven different locations.

Ms Lacey and Revenue Commissioners collector general Liam Irwin highlighted previous decentralisation programmes. Both said that these had been a success but there had been transitional difficulties.

Half the posts in the Collectors General office in Limerick had to be filled by promotions because of a low take-up of transfers.

Both agencies had to recruit new staff to fill up to 20% of the positions.