Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Can the Taoiseach put our minds at rest that the recently announced €126 million aviation package, of which €40 million is allocated to Cork Airport, will not count as state aid? Some €40 million was recently spent on runway works in Cork Airport on what was described as the fastest capital project in the State, having been green-lighted soon after the Taoiseach took office. I raise the concern because for years, Waterford Airport has requested modest supports from Government which have been denied, supposedly due to EU state aid rules. The Government is presently withdrawing annual essential safety funding of €350,000 from Waterford Airport, even as it announced this €126 million package. It is hard not to contrast the fortunes of these two airports. Unlawful state aid is the question.

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