Civil servants in dark over relocation - FG

Civil servants who do not wish to decentralise feel they are "being left high and dry" because they are getting no information about what is in store for them if they do not move, the Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, claimed.

He said there was "serious unrest among people who are being asked to move when they do not want to do so, despite the fact that this is a voluntary scheme".

He questioned whether the Government had thought the issue through, and asked "is there anyone who can explain their future career prospects to professional and technical personnel working in semi-state bodies" if they decided not to decentralise.

"As the scheme is voluntary, what is in store for people" who "decided not to go?", Mr Kenny asked.

The Minister for Defence, Mr Smith, said however that a central applications facility had been launched, which was an integrated transfer system "to allow people apply for transfer to decentralised locations and to rank their preferences for different locations".

Mr Smith, who was taking leaders' questions in the absence of the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, added that "there were circumstances where individuals did not wish to transfer".

But "each Department and agency has established its own unit to adjudicate and assist each individual.

"This programme will proceed whether the Opposition likes it or not."

The Minister's answer was one of "truly imbecilic proportions and it shows absolute contempt and arrogance", said Mr Kenny. He was asking questions for "dedicated public servants".

He said that some 200 people were to be transferred to Mitchelstown, Co Cork from Bus Éireann "but there are only 80 people who can be transferred because they are administrative. There are only two people who wish to go voluntarily."

He stressed that "it is a voluntary scheme yet no one is able to tell them what is in store for them if they decide not to move."

He asked the Minister to explain the "future career prospects of those people".

Mr Smith replied that there had been a number of extremely successful decentralisation programmes that were "carried out in the face of the kind of opposition the deputy is outlining".

He said that "everybody recognises that there will be some difficulties and that there will be quite a number of people who want to remain in Dublin."

Sinn Féin's leader in the Dáil, Mr Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin, asked how the programme could be described as voluntary when there had been no consultation.

He said that civil servants from the Combat Poverty Agency stated that there was no prospect of the agency moving to Monaghan as planned.

There was "huge concern" among staff in the Department of Health who had not yet been told where they were being located.

However, the Minister said that "in some cases it will take time to tease out problems.

"Decentralisation will be done on a voluntary basis with as much co-operation as possible. It will work."