Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The aviation sector has been decimated by this pandemic. Workers in the sector are on their knees. They are on reduced hours and pay, with some are in receipt of the pandemic unemployment payment, PUP, and others the employment wage subsidy scheme, while many have been accessing jobseeker's benefit and short-term work supports. Others have suffered the loss of their jobs.

Last week, we heard the devastating announcement by Aer Lingus regarding base closures. More than 140,000 jobs depend on us getting this right and ensuring that the sector can come through this crisis, but that means the Minister and the Government need to stop the hands-off approach they have taken to date. Ours is an island nation. To get on or off this island, we have to travel by plane or boat, but the Minister and the Government have approached the crisis in the aviation sector as though we do not need the sector. They have approached it as though we could cycle to Berlin, Melbourne, Cape Town or London. Without our connectivity, we are lost. A core message this Government needs to hear is that our connectivity must be protected. Connectivity and jobs have to be front and centre. My colleague, Sinn Féin's transport spokesperson, Teachta O’Rourke, and I are blue in the face telling the Government that we need a survival and recovery plan for the aviation sector.

From the outset of the pandemic, workers and unions in the sector have called for two things, namely, supports and a plan. The supports for workers, airlines and airports are a fraction of what is needed, based on international comparisons. Countries in Europe which are connected by rail and road have invested more in their aviation sector than we have, even though we are an island on the edge of the Atlantic. The fact there have been no conditions for the protection of jobs and strategic connectivity is a disgrace.

Last week, the Minister came in and reeled off figures and schemes to us and claimed that the aviation industry should be happy with what it has got. He was just listing the supports which also exist for other sectors. The reality is that the aviation sector is unique. It has been hit much harder than other sectors and needs unique supports and a unique recovery plan. That recovery plan must include antigen testing and the digital green certificate and its quick adoption.

We need a roadmap out of this situation because, at the least, that will give Aer Lingus and other airlines, confidence they will be able to retain bases because business will be coming back. The Minister has not been giving the airlines that confidence. In fact, many have claimed that the Government does the opposite of giving confidence to the aviation sector. From talking to them, I know that people in the sector are deeply disappointed by the Government's hands-off attitude. They do not believe that the Minister in charge is committed to aviation. This Government has to step up to the plate and demonstrate that commitment through a strategic recovery plan and the necessary supports.

For the avoidance of doubt, Sinn Féin vigorously opposed the privatisation of Aer Lingus in 2015 by Fine Gael and the Labour Party. The workers in Aer Lingus have continuously been let down by successive governments. Fianna Fáil, the Green Party, Fine Gael and the Labour Party were all party to the sell-off of Aer Lingus at different points. We warned at the time the State not owning a share in this vital airline would be bad for workers and the maintenance of connectivity. Unfortunately, that decision has left the Government severely weakened in its current position, which is becoming obvious.

If Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the Green Party do not produce a recovery plan soon and if they do not get it right, there will be even greater damage to the sector. I am asking the Minister to engage proactively with the airlines and the aviation sector as a whole and to speak with the trade unions, including the Irish Air Line Pilots Association, IALPA, SIPTU, Fórsa and all the unions involved and with the people involved in Recover Irish Aviation about the scale, breadth, depth and nature of the plan needed to help the sector recover.

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