Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chairman for allowing me in at this point. Like the other members, I extend my congratulations to Mr. Ó Céidigh on his new appointment. I look forward to the Shannon Group's board being fully functional. As we are all aware, this position was left vacant for a long time - more than 12 months. It may help to put the Shannon Group into a good place to face the journey of recovery that, invariably, lies ahead. I am glad to hear him speak specifically of the passion, energy and drive he will bring to this role. Those qualities are important going forward. I am grateful to have been afforded the opportunity to attend the committee today to converse with Mr. Ó Céidigh in substitution for Deputy Darren O'Rourke. The Deputy kindly gave me his slot so that I could address Mr. Ó Céidigh given how integral Shannon Airport is to my constituency of Clare. I am aware the remit of the Shannon Group goes beyond the airport and, as Mr. Ó Céidigh stated, the Shannon campus comprises more than 300 companies and is a hive of activity in and of itself. However, most of my questions will mainly focus on the airport.

Since the pandemic struck last March, many people expressed their deepest concerns to me over the decay of Shannon Airport and some went as far as to say that this was evident in pre-pandemic times. Obviously, the aviation industry throughout the island and, indeed, the world, has been one of the industries worst affected because of the significant restrictions on travel, and we are all aware of that fact. Even before the pandemic, Aer Lingus workers expressed industrial relation concerns and many of my constituents reached out to me, including cabin crew workers, air-traffic controllers, maintenance workers etc. to express their concerns on the management of Shannon Airport. Mr. Ó Céidigh informed us of his aim to recover Shannon's air traffic to 2019 levels by 2024. My first question is on the core tenets of the strategy that will make this aim impossible to achieve. Mr. Ó Céidigh said that it is an ambitious target. What are the necessary factors to help or hinder him meeting that target? We had, for example, presentations from members of the Shannon Chamber on the traffic recovery support scheme, TRSS, and the idea around that. What are Mr. Ó Céidigh's views on that?

Will Mr. Ó Céidigh confirm his position on the question of the reintegration of Shannon Airport? We know that previously Shannon Airport was incorporated under the DAA, however, my question is not on this topic. We have received many statements on aviation in recent months and I and other elected representatives, particularly those in Sinn Féin, have called for the establishment of a national airport authority whereby Shannon Airport could be reintegrated. Does Mr. Ó Céidigh endorse a national umbrella for the orchestration of the three main airports in Dublin, Cork and Shannon and what are his views on that? Does he believe Shannon Airport is best placed to run independently? Sinn Féin believes there needs to be equity between these three airports in order to guarantee equitable allocation of resources and funding and to ensure balanced regional development across the whole island. This is an issue about which I have had many conversations with constituents. They are picking up on the language used by the Government around, for example, the importance of regional development, however, that importance is not always the case in reality. This was evident in the number of flights afforded to Shannon Airport during Covid.

What are Mr. Ó Céidigh's views on the proposed rail line in the Limerick-Shannon metropolitan area as outlined in the national development plan published on Monday? I have heard some of his comments on that, however, I am interested in the reaction from Shannon Chamber which is calling the plan quite ambitious and has concerns about how expensive the project will be. What is Mr. Ó Céidigh's vision in this regard? He stated that he is not in the position of the chair at present and, therefore, does not have access to documents. He might come back to me with further clarification on that point as to when that will take place. Pre-emptive to that, what are his views on the rail line and its implementation in the near future? A new hangar has been permitted under the national development plan. Will Mr. Ó Céidigh give us more information on that if possible?

I refer to the transfer of the heritage sites which, all going to plan, will take place by the end of the business year according to responses I have received to parliamentary questions. Until what point will it remain the responsibility of the Shannon Group to manage and maintain the heritage sites? I have also been informed that, in order to mitigate the significant losses incurred by the group over the Covid period, the sites will operate seasonally for the foreseeable future. Will Mr. Ó Céidigh confirm if this means the sites will be closed until the transfer takes place? Will he confirm, based on his negotiations with stakeholders and Clare County Council, that the leaseholder agreements will remain unaffected after the transfer? I welcome any information he may have about the transfer, such as what stage it is at and what it will involve over the coming months.