Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I feel it is rather late coming together and airlines have not been able to fully plan a schedule in advance, which has certainly hampered Shannon.

One of the recommendations of the aviation task force was to look at the financing of Shannon Airport. It is in dire straits and is losing a hell of a lot of money every week. There is a gross imbalance in aviation with 155,000 passengers passing through Dublin Airport in the second quarter of this year and fewer than 100 passengers coming through Shannon at the same time. That imbalance needs to be addressed.

The aviation task force also recommended the State should provide airports with what is referred to as a common fixed sum per passenger. This is particularly needed in Shannon and Cork airports so that they are financially viable and can compete in attracting airlines. I ask the Minister to comment on some of those points. There is a significant imbalance in Ireland. If this were a boat it would be capsizing right now, but it is not, and we have a chance to put the policy right. How will the Minister implement some of those recommendations?