Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his comprehensive reply. Funding will be required from the State, local government and private investors. However, I believe a positive response from the Government and from the Minister will spur on other interested parties and ensure that the developments needed are delivered. It is imperative that support from the Government for the extension is delivered. If the Government could commit to the €5 million requested, there would be matched funding from private investors of €5 million and matched funding of a further €3 million from the local authorities in Waterford, Kilkenny and Wexford. I welcome the Minister of State's comments to the effect that he received a response from the airport last week which is being reviewed by his Department and which will be assessed against national aviation and transport policy objectives, as well as broader Government policies. I hope we will have a timely reply on that.

I reiterate some of the comments I made earlier.

The development of this runway is absolutely essential. Waterford city is on the crest of a wave currently. There are huge opportunities in Waterford to make it the capital city of the south east. There is no doubt that if the airport could access this runway we would end up with a range of additional businesses and opportunities. I believe the airport would reduce its dependency on Government support in the long run, and its potential to attract additional investment and employment opportunities to the area would be enhanced.

I hope to welcome the Minister's decision on the airport at Waterford as soon as possible.

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