The Irish case: Decentralisation-lite?

In Ireland, the term ‘decentralisation’ has been used vicariously. Although more than 50% of civil servants now work outside the capital, what has occurred has been deconcentration of services rather than decentralisation of power and resources. This chapter reviews central government decentralisation projects, particularly, the doomed programme of 2003-2011 (which focused on physical decentralisation of central government departments). The rhetoric of decentralisation is frequently used with reference to sub-national level in Ireland. However, the reality is that power remains centralised despite the wide-ranging local government reforms implemented in recent years. Thus, decentralisation in Ireland can be regarded as more symbolic than systemic.