Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)

I did not say that, what I said is that we have been waiting so long for a conference centre that I am anxious, as I am sure everybody is, to get the conference centre in Dublin finished. I will revert to the Deputy as I do not have any specific information on the matter. I appreciate the value of conference facilities, given the size of that market and the tourism potential that flows from bringing people to the country for conferences.

The second point related to custom and border protection facilities. I have some familiarity with this matter as I dealt with it when I was Minister for Transport. The Deputy is also familiar with the area. There was an absolute commitment to have the facility located in the two big centres in Ireland, one in Shannon and one in Dublin Airport. It was agreed to proceed with the Shannon project much more quickly because the facility in Dublin was affected by the reorganisation and rebuild there. There simply was not the space to put it in but it is being planned and built into the new facilities in Dublin. It was my understanding that an investment of €50 million to €60 million was required and the Dublin Airport Authority, in conjunction with the Shannon Airport Authority, was happy to make that commitment. Such a facility will make a unique selling point, especially for the west as it will be up and running before the one in Dublin. It will have a certain attraction in terms of building a customer base in Shannon.

I am aware discussions took place between the appropriate authorities in Shannon and the American authorities, who have a significant role in the matter as they man and control the border control centres. I do not have information in my note on the matter but I will pass on the Deputy's concerns to my colleague, the Minister for Transport. I agree it is an important element for the development of Shannon and Shannon Airport. Even with the limited facilities in Shannon, I understand that for the sake of convenience many people come from the UK to Ireland to get pre-clearance to travel to the United Stated. It is important that the facilities are fully rolled out. I understand the Americans do not have plans to put the pre-clearance facilities anywhere else.

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