Government will have to pay at least $2 million to move the Education Department's offices to the former baselands in St. David's.

And once there, it will have to lease a former general administrative building at commercial rates.

With that and the bulk of public school restructuring scheduled for this year, Education Minister Jerome Dill told The Royal Gazette the department had no intention of moving before September.

While Government set aside $5 million in this year's budget for office relocations, including the Education Department, Mr. Dill said it came down to coordinating the move carefully.

"The move will be extremely expensive,'' he said. "I don't know about the leasing cost. But the move alone will cost upwards of $2 million.

"We're currently at 12 different locations. Consolidation makes it effective as far as administration is concerned. But we have to ask whether that money should be used for that purpose this year when we're gearing up for restructuring and whether we should use our energy on the move.

"It would be unreasonable to put that burden on staff, including teachers and principals, because in the long run the children will feel the effect.'' Mr. Dill also pointed out that there was no pressure from the Bermuda Hospitals Board for the department to move from its headquarters at the old hospital building on Point Finger Road, Paget.

And he said he did not believe the St. David's location would pose a problem in terms of travelling time for officials, teachers, parents and others who needed to visit the department.

"Wherever our headquarters are does not determine where our meetings will be,'' Mr. Dill stressed. "I don't see that as an insurmountable problem. We have to be adaptable and flexible and prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st Century.'' However, he said education officials had to consider the conditions of the old facilities in Paget.

But he noted: "If we were to move, it would not be before September.'' Meanwhile, Bermuda Land Development Company chairman Vince Ingham said the BLDC was eager to attract individuals, organisations, businesses and Government to the Base lands.

Asked why the BLDC -- which took over the running of the Bases -- was leasing the former Base building to the Education Department, Mr. Ingham explained: "We have a mandate to become a commercially viable operation as soon as we can.

"There is a lease which governs our right to sub-lease to other organisations, including Government departments.

"As a business entity we are trying to establish an armslength relationship with Government.'' And while Mr. Ingham did not have the leasing rates on hand, he said: "It will be a commercial rate which one would expect to have in other parts of the Island. But we will try to adjust it to base rates because any tenant will have to make improvements to the property.'' "We're optimistic that we will come to some arrangement,'' he added, referring to talks on the Education Department's future rent. "We're very interested in seeing activity on the base.''