Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Deputies who contributed to the debate. I carefully noted the issues raised and will try to respond to as many as possible in my reply.

Deputy Olivia Mitchell and Deputy Boyle raised the issue of the delay in arranging for ratification of the revised convention, which was signed in 1997. Ratification by EU member states was delayed at the request of the Commission pending the formal accession of the EU to Eurocontrol, which took place on 8 October 2002. As Deputies Shortall and Dennehy correctly pointed out, the revised convention will only come fully into force when all 35 member states ratify it. To date, 26 of the 35 Eurocontrol member states have ratified the revised convention. A number of EU member states have yet to ratify the convention and the target for ratification by all member states and entry into force is the end of this year.

Deputy Boyle also referred to the Air Navigation and Transport (Indemnities) Act 2005, which was enacted in July 2005. In common with the other member states, Ireland provided indemnities to the aviation sector when essential insurance cover was withdrawn in 2001. We enacted legislation to provide for this and, in view of the large liabilities involved, we provided a sunset clause which resulted in the legislation expiring at the end of 2002. Unlike in Ireland, a number of the other member states already had suitable legislative arrangements. To be in a position to provide similar cover if essential insurance is again withdrawn from the aviation sector, the Oireachtas enacted legislation in July 2005 which will enable Ireland to issue indemnities for the aviation industry in Ireland. This was necessary because of the expiry of the 2001 legislation and it puts Ireland in a similar situation to the other member states.

Aviation insurers have withdrawn war and terrorism cover for "dirty bomb" risks for aircraft hulls. However, airlines have been willing to continue without this cover because it is not compulsory to have it. Third party and passenger liability cover, which is compulsory under EU law, is expected to be withdrawn at some stage this year, although precisely when is not certain. In view of the enactment of the 2005 indemnities Act, Ireland will be ready to respond quickly to that withdrawal.

Deputy Olivia Mitchell and Deputy Shortall raised the issue of detention and sale of aircraft for unpaid debts and the concerns expressed by some aircraft leasing companies in that regard. Section 4 of the Bill, referred to by Deputy Mitchell, is merely a technical amendment. It in no way changes the existing powers of detention and sale contained in the Irish Aviation Authority Act 1993 and the Air Navigation and Transport Act 1998.

Articles 5 to 9 of annexe IV to the revised convention refer to the issues of attaching the en route charge as a lien on the aircraft, making the operator and owner jointly and severally liable and detention and sale of aircraft to enforce recovery. These provisions are not included in the published Bill. Under the convention, Ireland is under no compulsion to legislate for creation of liens or joint and several liability. Rather, it is at the discretion of each contracting party to introduce domestic law to implement this element of the convention. Passage of this Bill in its current form will not increase our current powers relating to detention and sale of aircraft for unpaid charges. These provisions have been in place since 1988.

The leasing companies have also voiced concerns about the powers contained in earlier Acts dating from 1988 and they have asked that they be modified in the Air Navigation (Eurocontrol) Bill 2005. As a result, the Minister consulted the Attorney General's office and the Irish Aviation Authority, the Dublin Airport Authority and Eurocontrol. All argued against the removal or dilution of the existing powers of detention and sale. Following consideration of all the views expressed on both sides it has been decided not to make any changes to the existing powers at this point. The reasons for this are as follows.

First, there is a safeguard for an owner in the selling of the aircraft for the purposes of meeting a debt to Eurocontrol in respect of a liability of an operator. To sell an aircraft an application must be made to the High Court and the registered owner would have to be on notice about this proposed sale.

Second, it is not a procedure that has been resorted to lightly in the past. There has been no instance where an aircraft has been detained and subsequently sold due to non-payment of a debt to Eurocontrol. The existence of these powers, however, is regarded as having a significant deterrent effect.

Third, the aircraft leasing companies can afford financial protection by building provisions into their lease agreements with the aircraft operators. This facility is not available to the air traffic control provider when doing business with airlines. Services are provided to all aircraft in airspace in which the air navigation services are provided. For safety reasons, there is no option to decline to provide air navigation services to aircraft. In practice, therefore, an aircraft lessor is usually in a better position than an airport authority or air traffic control provider to monitor the financial status of the operator as it can specify any necessary requirements under the aircraft lease.

Fourth, any amendment to the legislation which would give rise to different legal treatment of leased versus owned aircraft would be inappropriate. Fifth, the provisions apply equally to debts incurred by airline companies for Eurocontrol charges or for airport charges. Any change in the legislative provisions relating to Eurocontrol charges would give rise to different treatment of air navigation and airport charges, which would amount to arbitrary discrimination between service providers to airlines and would not be appropriate.

I am advised that the detention and sale provisions in Irish law are similar to those under UK law, another common law system. Greece also has a detention procedure, while Cyprus has legislation that will become effective on the entry into force of the revised convention which provides for detention of aircraft until judicial measures are taken against the operator and-or owner. Eurocontrol member states which have civil law systems have similar powers to seize aircraft for non-payment of debts. All these procedures, whether under common or civil law, have the same effect of freezing the asset in question and making it available as a security for the payment of a debt.

I am also advised by Eurocontrol that the recovery rate for en route charges in 2004 was 99.4%, of which detention played a minor part. With such an effective rate, it is unfair to state that Eurocontrol recovery procedures are inefficient or lax. The case referred to by Deputy Olivia Mitchell is exceptional and the size of the debt in the case reflects its particular circumstances. The Eurocontrol recovery rate of more than 99% in recent years has benefited all member states, including Ireland. The Irish Aviation Authority recouped more than €90 million in en route charges in 2005.

Deputy Catherine Murphy referred to issues concerning Weston Aerodrome, a privately owned aerodrome which has been operating since 1938. It is licensed by the Irish Aviation Authority, IAA, in accordance with the Irish Aviation Authority (Aerodrome and Visual Ground Aids Order) Regulations, SI 334 of 2000, and in issuing the licence the authority's remit extends to aviation safety standards. The IAA licenses Weston having regard to the standards laid down by the International Civil Aviation Organisation in annex 14 to the Chicago Convention. The IAA applies international standards to the regulation of aviation safety, including matters such as airspace design and rules of the air.

The local authorities are responsible for land use planning at and in the vicinity of Weston Aerodrome in accordance with the Planning and Development Act 2000. In addition, the Irish Aviation Authority is a notice party under the Planning and Development Regulations, SI 600 of 2001, so that any development with the potential to endanger or interfere with the safety or safe and efficient navigation of aircraft is sent to the authority. I understand the IAA is satisfied with safety levels at Weston Aerodrome.

Deputy Dennehy and Deputy Boyle referred to the position of Cork Airport and its establishment as a fully independent and autonomous authority in accordance with the State Airports Act. Deputy Pat Breen also referred to the position of Shannon Airport. The Act provides a framework to allow for an orderly approach to the distribution of the assets of Shannon and Cork airports in conformity with the capital maintenance and other provisions of the Companies Acts.

New boards were appointed at all three airports in 2004. The boards of Cork and Shannon airports are now charged with making preparations to assume responsibility for the ownership and development of the airports. They are also empowered to undertake certain management and operational functions on an agreed basis with Dublin Airport Authority during the interim period.

Under the Act, before any assets can transfer to either the Shannon or Cork airport authorities, the Minister for Transport and the Minister for Finance will have to be satisfied as to the financial and operational readiness of the airport authorities. Accordingly, each airport authority is required to prepare a comprehensive business plan and obtain the approval of the Ministers for these plans before any assets can be transferred.

The three State airport authorities continue to work on the preparation of their business plans with the Dublin Airport Authority, DAA, co-ordinating the process. In this context, a range of issues arise, including the unsustainable cost base at Shannon Airport, the recent airport charges determination for Dublin Airport by the Commission for Aviation Regulation and the optimum mechanisms for the financing of the new terminal at Cork Airport. These are complex issues which the airport authorities must consider carefully and, as the Minister has indicated previously, he has not imposed any artificial deadlines for the completion of the business planning process. A major new terminal development project is being completed at Cork Airport. This will deliver an annual passenger capacity of 3 million people with the facility to expand capacity to 5 million passengers when required.

At an early stage in the airport restructuring process, it was indicated that the intention was that both the independent Cork and Shannon airports would commence on a debt-free basis. However, the intention throughout was that this would be subject to determining the optimum mechanisms for allocating airport assets among the three airports in compliance with the capital maintenance rules and other provisions of the Companies Acts. The position with regard to the transfer of assets to Cork Airport Authority was set out in the course of the passing of the State Airports Act 2004. Owing to the tightness of Dublin Airport Authority's distributable reserves, a phased approach to restructuring was outlined at the time. The option of negotiating a finance lease covering a portion of Cork Airport's assets to facilitate the earlier establishment of Cork Airport as a fully independent airport was mentioned. I assure Deputy Dennehy and Deputy Boyle that Cork Airport's ability to operate on a commercial basis will be fully assessed as part of the business planning process and will be factored into the decisions made.

Deputies Olivia Mitchell, Eamon Ryan, Finian McGrath, Dennehy, Boyle and Naughten raised the question of safety standards in Irish aviation, specifically recently reported incidents. The Irish Aviation Authority exercises safety oversight of the Irish aviation industry according to established international standards and procedures and fully implements international requirements in the monitoring of its operators. The authority regulates the industry to the highest international standards, as borne out by a number of independent audits, including one carried out on behalf of the Minister of Transport to evaluate the performance of the authority and to satisfy himself as to its adequacy and effectiveness. There is no compromise on safety.

Deputy Crowe raised the question of the requirements of military users of European airspace and the flexible use of airspace. Eurocontrol is developing a framework to increase the exchange of information between civil and military air navigation service providers. This is achieved through a much closer working relationship than in the past between civil and military air traffic controllers and through building up air traffic management system interoperability.

The airspace over Europe is a finite resource for use by all airspace users both civil and military. However, as a finite resource some measure of agreement is needed concerning its use and that use needs to be economic and effective. This need became particularly relevant following the massive increase recorded in commercial air traffic in the 1980s and 1990s. There is a clear need for safe coexistence between civil and military operations in a common airspace. Both Eurocontrol and the European Union are agreed that the safe and efficient use of airspace can only be achieved through close co-operation between civil and military users of airspace, mainly based on the concept of flexible use of airspace and effective civil military co-ordination as established by the international civil aviation organisation.

Deputies also raised the issue of military aircraft landing at Shannon. The Minister for Transport is responsible for civilian aircraft carrying weapons or munitions of war into or over Ireland. The Minister for Foreign Affairs is responsible for regulating the activities of military aircraft landing in or flying over Ireland. The carriage of weapons or munitions on civilian aircraft, either landing or flying over, is prohibited under Irish law unless an exemption is given by the Minister for Transport. Before the Minister issues an exemption, the Department of Transport consults the Department of Foreign Affairs regarding foreign policy, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform regarding security and the Irish Aviation Authority regarding aviation safety, and also informs the Department of Defence. The decision to facilitate the US in the transport of troops through Irish airports is a matter for Ireland's foreign policy. The Minister for Transport deals with requests for exemptions for aircraft carrying weapons or munitions on civilian aircraft in that context.

Deputy Crowe referred to Galileo and how it was to be funded. Galileo is Europe's satellite radio navigation programme. It was launched at the initiative of the European Commission and developed jointly with the European Space Agency. As it provides for accurate location pinpointing, it opens potential for the development of a new generation of universal services in areas such as transport, telecommunications, agriculture and fisheries. The total estimated Galileo project cost is €3.6 billion. The development phase will account for €1.5 billion of this and the financing will be split more or less equally between the European Community and the European Space Agency. The cost of the deployment phase is estimated at €2.1 billion, of which one third is expected to come from the EU budget and the rest from the private sector.

I refer to issues raised by Deputy Durkan regarding delays arising from air traffic control. In the past decade, air traffic has grown by more than 50% and this growth is set to continue. Europe's airspace is one of the busiest in the world with more than 9.2 million flights in 2005 carrying some 700 million passengers. In excess of 30,000 flights take place on busiest days with more than 3,000 flights in the air at the same time. Eurocontrol expects this traffic to reach 16 million per year by 2020. Current systems with ongoing improvements should be able to handle this increased load until the middle of the next decade and after that, more radical measures will be called for to avoid serious congestion.

Eurocontrol has as its primary objective the development of a seamless pan-European air traffic management system. The achievement of this objective is a key element to the present and future challenges facing the aviation community which must cope with the forecasted growth in air traffic while at the same time maintaining a high level of safety, reducing cost and respecting the environment. It is confidently expected that the single European sky initiative will lay the foundations of a unified system which will be able to cater for the anticipated growth. This single European sky initiative, launched by the Commission, aims to restructure European airspace as a function of traffic flows, rather than according to national borders to create additional capacity and to increase overall efficiency of the air traffic management system.

Eurocontrol has considerable expertise and experience in these fields, which will be applied to help make the single European sky become a reality. The single European sky initiative marks the beginning of a new, dramatic and exciting chapter in European air traffic control. The development of the single European sky proposal represents a challenge and an opportunity for the air navigation service providers to demonstrate in a practical way the greater efficiencies that can be obtained through the integration and development of services on a European scale while ensuring uniformly high safety standards throughout Europe. The revised convention seeks to provide for a more effective air management institutional policy and decision-making structure for Europe with the overall objective of increasing airspace capacity and reducing air traffic control delays.

Pressure for change came from a number of sources, particularly airlines dissatisfied with the failure to unify and centralise air traffic management in Europe. The convention when implemented will provide for the necessary institutional reforms required to achieve a uniform European air traffic management system for the control of general air traffic in European airspace and in our airports.

Deputy Durkan asked about the long delays in getting compensation. Under the European Communities (Compensation and Assistance to Air Passengers)(Denied Boarding, Cancellation or Long Delay of Flights) Regulations, SI 274 of 2005, the Commission for Aviation Regulation was appointed as the designated body for the purpose of implementing Regulation EC 261/2004, establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of being denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights and repealing Regulation EEC 295/1991. This legislation deals with concerns raised by the Deputy regarding passengers who are left stranded.

Deputy Pat Breen asked about the implications for Shannon Airport of the proposed agreement between the European Union and the United States on air transport — the so-called open skies agreement. The Deputy will be aware that the Minister for Transport, Deputy Cullen, has negotiated a transition arrangement with the US for Shannon Airport. The Minister indicated at the time of announcing the transition arrangement that he would undertake the development of an economic and tourism development plan for Shannon, work on which is under way in the Department of Transport in consultation with the Departments of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, and Arts, Sport and Tourism.

I agree with Deputy Eamon Ryan that maintaining an optimal balance between economic progress, social development and environmental responsibility is essential. The aviation industry has reduced its environmental impact in recent decades through the development of new technology and the adoption of specific operating methods. Achieving further improvements in environmental performance is a key research and development objective for the aviation industry.

I refer to the contribution of Deputy Naughten. I dealt with the issues raised by the Deputy in regard to tackling the problems arising from the fragmentation of the air traffic control system in Europe. That is one of the reasons the revised Eurocontrol Convention was brought forward and the parallel single sky initiative taken by the European Commission.

I noted Deputy Naughten's comments on security at non-State airports and the importance of the slots at Heathrow. I am very familiar with a number of the non-State airports, particularly the one in my county. While we may not have airport police at the airport, the security level is high. Those employed at the airports to provide the security have been trained specifically for that task. I note also the Deputy's comments about the western rail corridor, an issue with which I am very familiar.

Mar fhocal scoir, cuirim mo bhuíochas in iúl do na Teachtaí a ghlac páirt sa díospóireacht fhíorthábhachtach seo, agus tá súil agam nach fada go mbeimid ag plé na ceiste agus an Bhille seo aríst sa choiste, roimh dheireadh na míosa seo nó ag tús na míosa seo chugainn.

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