James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)

The Minister said she set up the new group on 12 February; she seems to be slow out of the traps. She now tells us she was involved personally from November in regard to this matter. This is all the more worrying given that nothing happened and that she did not see what was coming down the tracks. She surely knew when the Aer Lingus contract slipped that there would be problems. Surely it has been clear that it was extremely naïve to allow all the offers of interest to go straight to SR Technics, which has now shown very clearly that it has no interest in allowing Dublin Airport to act as a competitor to its Zurich operation.

Two serious questions arise regarding what is now not only a tragedy for north County Dublin but also the greater Dublin area, bearing in mind the asset stripping and, as the Minister stated today, the fact that the company has sold assets to parties other than the original 30 bidders. Is this correct?

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