Dara Murphy (Cork North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I, too, welcome the Bill. While it is predominantly about the independence of Shannon Airport I know having heard the Minister's contribution earlier and having read it that it makes reference to Cork Airport and moves towards its independence. Many of the points made by Deputy Patrick O'Donovan also apply to Cork. Of significant importance has been the focus of the Government on regional development. Previous Governments spent a great deal of time and effort on decentralisation, gateway towns and so on and so forth. As soon as that process commenced, backbench Fianna Fáil Deputies stepped up crying, "My town, my village", which I suppose is understandable.

The reality for a small country like Ireland that is dependent on its capital city is that to have proper regional development one must first break off the bigger regions and cities. It is interesting to note the following in relation to the two other countries that like Ireland were in programmes. Almost half of the population of Greece lives in Athens city and more than 40% of Portugal's population lives in Lisbon. In terms of the European Union, Dublin which is home to almost 30% of Ireland's population, comes third in this regard. What always fascinates me is that when people talk about Cork city they are focused on the boundary and when they speak about Dublin they often include four or five other counties. Nonetheless in the Dublin region there is a disproportionate population when compared with the remainder of the country.

Everybody accepts that rebooting and driving the economy must start in the capital city. However, what we have started to see happen is that the other engines such as Cork city, the mid-west region and Galway are also starting to attract significant investment. It is to be welcomed that cities such as Cork, Galway and, to a slightly lesser extent, Limerick, in addition to the mid-west, are following closely the growth and job creation evident in Dublin. To that end, I compliment the Minister. The spine of roads between Cork and Limerick and also between Limerick and Galway represents the next stage of infrastructural development in the country, as the Minister will acknowledge.

Cork Airport, in particular, has always played a very important role in the economy. Cork people, including politicians, are more than aware of its importance. However, I still feel the potential for co-operation between airports is enormous. When I was Lord Mayor of Cork, a delegation from the west coast of the United States flew to Shannon Airport from where they travelled to Cork city centre to meet me and a certain group. They complimented us immediately on having a transatlantic airport so accessible to Cork city. They were talking about Shannon Airport. They had travelled for two and a half hours to an airport in the state of California. We know from data collected on many flights leaving or entering Shannon Airport on transatlantic routes that approximately 50% – in some cases, more – of the passengers are travelling either to or from destinations in County Cork. Perhaps the mistake we have made politically is to posit the existence of an either-or scenario. Certainly, airports have the potential between them to develop transatlantic flight status.

There is a view - it is being addressed to a certain extent in the Bill - that Cork remains in the shadow of Dublin. The question of the title, Dublin Airport Authority, is being addressed. It always gives the impression that Cork is a junior partner in the context of activities in Dublin. As the Minister acknowledged, we must not forget that, by some distance, the second biggest and busiest airport in the country is Cork Airport. Cork is the second largest centre for large multinationals in the region. While those who visit Cork infrequently are happy to do so via Shannon Airport, Dublin Airport or, perhaps, London, the reality is that many executives and others who work in some of these large companies, both international and Irish, have for a long time requested and required a transatlantic option from Cork Airport. I fully accept that the decision is a commercial one for the airlines, but there is a strong belief that until Cork Airport is completely independent, it will not be able to offer the same negotiating terms — competitive terms — as some of the other airports. There is no ambition in Cork to replace routes from Shannon Airport.

Let me consider the issue of the debts of all airports. Terminals were developed in different economic circumstances, certainly in Dublin and Cork. From my experience of having flown from terminals in both cities, they make travel extremely pleasant. That said, one would have to agree that, given their scale, the debt that hangs over both of them seems excessive. However, the money has been spent and the importance of airports to an island economy cannot be overestimated in any way.

Given what is happening in France and Belgium, I ask the Minister to point out to his colleagues in the other ministries for transport around Europe, when he gets a chance to do so, that a dispute essentially about what the French Government will charge airlines for flying through its airspace, bringing ordinary citizens of countries all over Europe to their knees, is totally unacceptable. During the years the French, in particular, have believed it is totally appropriate to comment on issues in Ireland and how we conduct ourselves, perhaps in taxation matters. It is appropriate, therefore, that we be able to comment on how the French conduct their industrial relations and this affects other member states. This issue will have to be addressed at the highest level.

I do not expect the Minister to comment on my next point. We have a magnificent airline. Not everybody loves Ryanair, but we should realise it has driven down the cost of air travel all over Europe. Many of its flights have been grounded and many ordinary people who work very hard, very many for 50 weeks a year, have had holidays and other travel arrangements significantly affected. The Minister, given the State’s relationship with the airline industry generally, is in a stronger position than most to make this point to his colleagues in both Belgium and France.

All airports are vital to us in the Republic. I welcome what the Minister has done for Shannon Airport. We are watching closely, enthusiastically and optimistically in the southern capital in the hope Cork Airport can continue to join Shannon, Dublin and other airports in being a driver of economic growth, bringing visitors to our beautiful country and allowing people to travel abroad to promote their businesses and the country for many generations to come.

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