Mr. Tim Fenn:

I thank the committee for inviting the Irish Hotels Federation to address the joint committee on this critical national issue. The Irish Hotels Federation, which was founded in 1937, is the national representative organisation of the hotel and guesthouse sector in Ireland, and we are a key stakeholder in Irish tourism. Tourism is one of Ireland's largest indigenous industries, providing 205,000 jobs, which is equivalent to 11% of total employment in the country. It accounts for almost 4% of gross national product. With 54,000 people directly employed in hotels and guesthouses across every county and town, the hotel sector is playing a critical role in contributing to recovery in the tourism industry and the wider economy. We believe the potential sale of Aer Lingus would have enormous implications for the tourism industry and the wider economy, given the unique challenges Ireland faces as a small island on the edge of the Atlantic with no passing footfall.

Maintaining strong levels of connectivity with our international markets is of vital importance. As such, the IHF has serious concerns about the sale of Aer Lingus and the prospect of the reallocation of its Heathrow slots to other routes down the line. Let there be no doubt about what is at stake. Any agreement that fails to safeguard those slots for Irish routes would have serious consequences for the long-term prospects of our national tourism product. The future loss of these slots is very real risk for Ireland given the constraints currently faced by Heathrow Airport, which is now at full capacity. In light of the critical strategic importance of these slots, it is imperative that the Government secure contractual rights to determine their use as part of any potential sale of the State's interest in the airline. In this regard, we support the recent commitment from the Government to seek a permanent and cast-iron guarantee in respect of connectivity for Shannon, Cork and Dublin Airports.

The temporary five-year arrangement proposed by IAG is entirely unacceptable. There needs to be a permanent commitment if any sale is to be considered by the Government. From a regional perspective, for Shannon and Cork, Heathrow slots are crucial in terms of providing tourism and business links directly to the south and west of Ireland. The figures speak for themselves. In 2014, passenger numbers between Shannon Airport and Heathrow stood at 233,000, while passenger numbers between Cork and Heathrow stood at 400,000.

The loss of the slots would be detrimental for national tourism, business employment and the ability of the west and south regions to attract multinational investment and sustain economic growth. Given the stakes involved, it is imperative that the Government uses its shareholding to protect the valuable slots in the national interest. Any other course of action would be short sighted. Thank you, Chairman, for the opportunity to address the Oireachtas joint committee. We look forward to addressing any matters the members may wish to raise.