James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I wish Senator Horkan well in his role as Acting Chairman. I congratulate Mr. Jacobs on his appointment and wish him well. To start with a few positives, it is great to see the new runway in Dublin Airport operating. It will have a significant impact and it is a positive development. We are very happy with the new runway in Cork Airport as well. I know that Niall McCarthy and the gang there have been doing a superb job. They have been excellent. The service provided at the airport has also been very good. It is good to see, even from a demand point of view, the strength of the recovery in the numbers in Cork Airport, which is very significant. That is not to be missed. It is very good news. That is down to good management, people wanting to use the service and good marketing. As a Corkman, I am happy in that respect.

On Dalton Philip's departure, I know there were difficulties around the situation in the summer, but he is a good man and I wish him well. He had a vision for the airport, from a capital development point of view, and he was quite a forward-thinking individual. Obviously, Covid caused enormous difficulties for aviation, which we have teased out in the committee. However, I have a few concerns. I have been on record in voicing my unhappiness with terminal 1. I am a regular user of Dublin Airport, primarily because if we are travelling for business midweek, it is close to Leinster House. I often take the Ryanair flights out of terminal 1. It does not reflect the country Ireland is, how developed our economy is, the success story of the Irish economy and the success of aviation. There are thousands of people in the city today who have flown in for the aviation conference. We are a global hub and a global player, but terminal 1 does not reflect that. I encourage Mr. Jacobs to deal with that situation as the incoming CEO.

On the development of a major piece of terminal infrastructure, I stand to be corrected, but I understand it is going to be 2029 before we see that new infrastructure come online at the airport. What is DAA's view on the €100 million underground tunnel at the airport?