Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

The Minister has correctly stated that access fares have been coming down in many cases. However, overall access ability, the capacity to access Ireland, has decreased. There has been a significant diversion of flights out of Ireland in particular. This morning, Aer Lingus announced it will be cancelling its Airbus orders which means there will not be growth in the long haul trips to America, upon which so much hope had been placed, for the foreseeable future and we all know how long it takes to deliver an order for a long haul Airbus.

Shannon Airport will have the advantage of providing pre-clearance facilities for US entry, unlike any other city in Europe. Is there anybody out there promoting this advantage to other carriers? If our carriers are not going to be bringing people to America in the numbers we had hoped, then we have to hope that other carriers will land in Shannon and avail of that facility and perhaps bring visitors to Ireland in both directions. Is this the responsibility of the Minister and, if not, whose responsibility is it? It is a once-off opportunity.

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