Tom Fleming (Kerry South, Independent)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to bring the issue of Kerry Airport before the House. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Ring, for being present to address it.

Continuation of the reductions in Kerry to Dublin flights is impacting severely on tourism and business in County Kerry and on jobs as Kerry Airport. Will the Minister bring forward to a more immediate date the public service obligation contract which was originally scheduled for July?

A new Ryanair schedule will see a further reduction in flights to and from Kerry and Dublin. We were contacted on this during the weekend. The schedule to be introduced in April will see just one return flight to Kerry each day and varying times on different days. The new schedule is likely to have a significant effect on business travellers using the route as it will no longer be possible to make a return flight to and from Kerry within one working day.

Under a public service obligation contract, Ryanair had provided three daily return services on the Kerry to Dublin route. Last November Ryanair pulled out of the public service obligation contract and reduced the service to one flight from Kerry to Dublin on weekday mornings and a return flight from Dublin to Kerry each evening. Ryanair blamed the decision on rising costs and the then Government's refusal to increase the public service obligation subsidy. Under a new schedule to come into effect next week just one Ryanair flight from Dublin to Kerry each day and the same plane will then make a return flight directly back to Dublin.

The current 9.25 a.m. weekday service from Kerry to Dublin will be replaced by a 1.55 p.m. service on Monday, 4 p.m. on Tuesdays, 11.40 a.m. on Wednesday and 4.25 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays, with no return option possible until the following day. As the Minister of State knows, the economy of County Kerry is hugely dependent on Kerry Airport and unless the situation is addressed in the immediate future the effects of peripherality on the county will be further exacerbated.

Kerry will be further disadvantaged in these tough economic times. The advancement of the commencement date of the public service obligation contract is of paramount importance and I appeal to the Minister of State to deal with this issue as a matter of urgency.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I am taking this Adjournment matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Varadkar, who is unable to be here as he is travelling to Brussels to attend a Transport Council meeting.

I am acutely aware of the implications for County Kerry of the reduction in the level of service on the Kerry-Dublin route resulting from Ryanair's decision to withdraw from the PSO contract. My Department is in the final stages of consultations with Kerry Airport on the specification for a new PSO air service on the Kerry-Dublin route. Discussions with the European Commission are also ongoing. The next step in the process is the submission of necessary PSO and tender notifications to the Commission for approval and publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities. In line with EU guidelines, the process of renewal of a PSO contract takes a minimum of six months from the date the notices appear in the Official Journal. My Department is making every effort to expedite the completion of the necessary documentation and transmission to the Commission.

Speaking on my tourism portfolio, I know how important this service is to County Kerry. The Department is making every effort to have the matter resolved as quickly as possible. I intend to be in the Deputy's constituency on 12 April and know this important issue will be raised with me. The Department and I will make every effort to try to resolve it as quickly as possible. I again thank the Deputy for raising it.