Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)

I will have to wait until the Government concludes its thinking on the proposals from my colleague, the Minister for Transport and the Marine, in regard to an economic and tourism development plan for the Shannon Airport catchment area, which the Government will examine shortly. The Deputy will recall that, as Minister for Transport, I put legislation through the House in regard to securing the independence of Shannon Airport and giving it the opportunity to develop its own future and attract its own visitors. I accept there are challenges in the Shannon area as a result of the open skies regime but there are also opportunities. The plan which the Minister for Transport and the Marine and I will bring forward will help considerably to bring additional numbers into the Shannon region. There are approximately 300,000 North American visitors to the Shannon area annually, although I appreciate that this number has remained static and that the phasing out of the stopover will bring real challenges. However, there is a strong board and strong leadership at the airport. The new plan which I am confident the Government will put together will make a real difference to the region.

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