Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

Is the Government still committed to the principle of competition between three independent airports, namely, Dublin, Cork and Shannon? As a policy position taken by the Government, I believed it to be correct. Is the Government still committed to trying to make it work next year or is the policy up in the air in light of the review and the decision to be taken next year?

Can the Minister stand over a situation whereby Cork Airport's largest competitor is Dublin Airport despite the fact the former cannot take any decisions without getting the latter's approval? It is a farcical position and we have the worst of both worlds, namely, a half-way house that has all of the structures of autonomy in decision making but none of the responsibilities. This is a major contributory factor to Cork Airport's poor figures.

See this speech in context