Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)

Does the Tánaiste believe that Ryanair is sincere in its position on this matter? It does not even have a business plan at this stage. If I or any other business person approached IDA, Enterprise Ireland or any other job creation agency without a business plan, we would be laughed out of the room. Does the Tánaiste suspect for even a moment that this may be an attempt by the chief executive officer of Ryanair to obtain cheap publicity and advertising? Is that a factor in her considerations? Does she understand why many people are sceptical about the actions of Ryanair? Does she believe the company is trying to get publicity on the backs of the hopes of the 830 former employees of SR Technics?

The Tánaiste alluded in her contribution to the availability of hangars one to five at Dublin Airport. In the absence of a business plan, can she, the IDA or anybody else evaluate whether those hangars would be suitable for the Ryanair project? The Tánaiste outlined several options, including a new build. Why does Ryanair want all this to happen within two weeks despite the fact that it has not produced a business plan to date? Is the Tánaiste suspicious of that?

The best solution to the SR Technics debacle would have been for the Government to have made the investment in buying out what was at the time a profitable company. Instead, the 830 jobs were lost to Malta, Abu Dhabi and Scotland. The Government should have ensured that the application to the European Commission under the European Globalisation Fund is not still pending. Is the Tánaiste aware that 20 former employees of SR Technics who applied to participate in a degree course at the Dublin Institute of Technology cannot do so because our application to the fund has not yet been cleared? If it is not approved within two weeks, as I understand it, they will not be accepted onto the degree course because the technology simply cannot process their applications without formal approval.

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