Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

The Government tax is separate. This is about increasing numbers. We must find a public-private arrangement that will help taxpayers generally by bringing more tourists to the country, perhaps even sending them down to parts of the county from where the Deputy comes. If we are to do that we must provide some incentivisation. The European Union is opposed to different rates or amounts being charged for different journeys. We can bring this to a uniform rate, to €3.

Deputy Flynn raised a very important question which needs to be addressed in the Finance Bill, namely, that we ensure airports that are not within the DAA remit but which have services available to the UK and elsewhere and would have attracted the higher rate heretofore are not be disadvantaged as they seek to innovate and prosper.

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