Today marks original deadline for decentralisation plans

The Government originally intended to have its decentralisation plan completed by today.

However, only 650 public servants have actually taken up any of the 10,000 relocated positions.

In December 2003 the Government announced that up to 10,000 public servants would be relocated out of Dublin to 53 towns and villages around the country.

However the third anniversary of that pledge passed three weeks ago and only 600 positions have been filled.

The junior minister with responsibility for overseeing the controversial plan, Tom Parlon, is defending the progress made to date

“My own department OPW(Office of Public Works) has got the biggest number of professional and technical people. Our new headquarters is under construction at the moment down in Trim,” he said.

“All senior architects, senior engineers have signed up to go. We are completing personnel decisions at the moment. But there are a number of issues still.”