Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for this question and the opportunity to update the House on the current situation at Dublin Airport. We can all agree that the passenger experience at Dublin Airport recently has fallen far short of the service that passengers should expect at our largest State airport. The DAA, as we all know, has the statutory responsibility to operate and manage Dublin Airport, including all the operations associated with security screening. The immediate priority is to ensure that Dublin Airport passengers can have confidence they will not miss their flights when they arrive on time at the airport.

Following the unacceptable level of service experienced by passengers and the undue stress they endured, particularly on Sunday, 29 May, I re-established daily meetings with the CEO and senior management in the DAA. I conveyed to the representatives of the DAA my disappointment and frustration at the situation and emphasised the importance of the DAA setting out a detailed plan to address it and the urgent need to restore passenger confidence in Dublin Airport. The DAA outlined its plan and the operational changes to be made in advance of the bank holiday weekend. These included maximising the availability of staff resources, increasing the number of security lanes open at peak times and improving queue management. While last weekend and the bank holiday weekend were extremely busy, queues moved smoothly with no reports of flights being missed.

I continue to engage with the DAA on its resourcing plan and the passenger experience at Dublin Airport. I am emphasising the importance of the airport management reassuring passengers that it is doing everything it can to deliver an acceptable passenger experience for all those departing from the airport. Though challenges remain, the DAA has advised that the measures it has taken will substantially mitigate risk into the busy summer period where passenger numbers are expected to increase by a further 10%.

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