Jerry Buttimer (Cork South-Central, Fine Gael)

I thank Deputy Mac Lochlainn for the question. I am taking it for the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, who cannot be here tonight. The programme for Government includes a clear commitment to engage with relevant stakeholders to establish air connectivity between Dublin and City of Derry airports. The Department of Transport is progressing the preparatory work necessary to establish a Dublin-Derry public service obligation air service in 2026. This service will enhance connectivity for the north west of the island pending progress on an upgrade to the A5 road transport corridor by the Executive, to which the Government has made a €600 million funding commitment.

As Deputy Mac Lochlainn will appreciate, significant engagement is required to establish this service. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, has met representatives of Donegal County Council, Derry City and Strabane District Council and City of Derry Airport, where progress on the establishment of this service was discussed. Officials from the Department of Transport are engaging closely with the Department for the Economy in the North, the Department for Transport in the United Kingdom and City of Derry Airport, as well as with the European Commission in relation to any potential state aid implications and obligations. This close engagement will continue over the coming months.

Stakeholder engagement is also vital and in this regard a market sounding exercise is being progressed by the Department of Transport for publication in the coming weeks. This exercise will seek views on the specification required to meet expected demand for the service in terms of aircraft capacity, fare structures, frequency and timing of services. It is also expected that this engagement will confirm the interest in and recognised benefits of the PSO air service for stakeholders in Derry and the wider north-west region. As Deputy Mac Lochlainn will know, following this, it is anticipated that a tender for the PSO air service will be published by the Department of Transport early next year, with a view to services commencing by October 2026, or earlier if operationally feasible.

The Deputy has been a long-time advocate, to be fair to him. When he and I served in the Seanad, he raised this matter there too. I assure him that the current timetable is the optimal timeline to ensure that the detailed work required to establish a service on this route can be completed so that a new service can be launched successfully. As he knows, the shared island fund is committed to this. I look forward to working with the Deputy and the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, on delivering services for the people of the north west.

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