John O'Mahony (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his overview of the Transport Council and his priorities going forward. This committee looks forward to working closely with him and welcomes his input at all times.

In respect of a couple of priorities, I welcome the Minister's statement that tourism is right throughout the country and that it can be a vehicle for providing balanced regional development. The Wild Atlantic Way was an example of that this year. I am aware there are plans for other targeted areas in the coming years. Recently, a couple of issues arose at the committee in respect of balanced regional development. We had a presentation from Galway Port in recent weeks which indicated that due to tiering of the ports, it may be disadvantaged because as a tier 3 port it is being handed over to the local authority. I am not sure if the Minister has met representatives of Galway Port.

The other issue concerns aviation policy and regional airports. In my area, Ireland West Airport Knock is a lifeline for getting tourists into the region from Donegal to Galway. I welcome the extension of funding for capital and operational expenditure but I understand that in some ways it will be more restrictive than the previous support. It is vital that support be continued for regional airports as a vehicle for delivering balanced regional development. Perhaps the Minister would address those issues.