Time for this arrogant government to listen to civil servants over decentralisation

SIPTU is organising a public meeting on decentralisation tomorrow Thursday February 1st in Liberty Hall. The Irish times reported on October 6th last year that less than 500 of the 7,000 Civil Service jobs earmarked for decentralisation had actually moved to date yet the government claims that the decentralisation programme is still on track. What arrogance.

According to Rory Hearne, People Before Profit Alliance candidate for Dublin South East who will be attending the meeting to support the workers, “the decentralisation mess is one more example of how the government ignores the needs and wishes of workers. In this case they are putting Minister's parish-pump politics over good planning. Thousands have refused to be intimidated or bullied and have just not applied to move. As the government insist that application to move is 'voluntary', the continued high level of refusal is important. Secondly, the series of industrial actions by SIPTU Fás members have highlighted the level of opposition. Each union has different agendas but it is important that they act together to ensure that those who want to move are sorted, and that those who want to remain in their present locations and jobs can continue to do so.
 
The body responsible for decentralisation, the Decentralisation Implementation Group (DIG) reported serious problems last year including:

• the low level of interest among 1,000 technical and professional expert staff
• poor progress among semi-State agencies that are moving
• delays of up to a year in the decentralisation building programme
• management of large computer equipment which holds confidential information, following previous plans to privatise the management of the decentralised centres holding the equipment- this would create security problems & be too costly

3,000 Dublin-based civil servants will be left surplus to requirements once the programme is completed by 2010 - a deadline four years later than that originally set by the Government.

The overall cost of the programme will be in the region of €900 million! Wouldn't that have been better spent on providing affordable housing, much needed hospital beds and more public transport?”