Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle. I join with the Taoiseach and other speakers in congratulating Deputies Cairns and Higgins. It is good to be back here again.

With the population continuing to grow and the pressure on all forms of public transport increasing, it should be no surprise to anyone that the 2007 planning condition imposed on the Dublin Airport Authority that it could only cater for 32 million passengers per annum would be exceeded at some point. During last November's general election campaign, all leaders -those now in government and in opposition- pledged they would lift the Dublin Airport passenger cap if they were in power. It was inevitable that at some point in the lifetime of this Government that legislation to do just that would be introduced. I fully appreciate the difficulty the passenger cap has put on Dublin Airport and it is important that there is a need to deal with the here-and-now problem that the airport faces along with planning for the future. As an island nation, we need to be internationally connected at all times.

I do, however, have concerns for Ireland's other airports. Dublin holds a dominant position in Irish aviation, accounting for 84% of all inbound and outbound flights. More needs to be done to support Shannon Airport, Cork Airport and Ireland West Airport, Knock. The proposed lifting of the cap at Dublin Airport presents the opportunity to make some positive changes insofar as those airports are concerned. Shannon Airport, in my own constituency of Clare, needs European hub connectivity. To illustrate this problem, there are nine direct flights each day from Dublin Airport to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, but not a single one from Shannon Airport. This is one example alone. There are many more I can think of. This illustrates how balanced regional development simply does not exist in Irish aviation at this time. The Government has published many documents that speak to balanced regional development such as Project Ireland 2040 and the national planning framework, across many metrics, with regional development being balanced in terms of housing, education, healthcare provision, and many other realms. It is high time the national policy on aviation along with the Irish Aviation Authority introduce a new regional development clause when applications are submitted by airlines to operate new routes.

At the moment it gives a one dimensional consideration, whether it approves or disapproves. There should be an additional clause to look at the other airports in Ireland to sweat out those other national assets. We also need to know with some certainty what will happen with the regional airports forum. This is a vital fund for Shannon, Cork and Knock airports. As we prepare to host the Ryder Cup in 2027 in the mid-west, we will need every red cent we can get on our hands on. I get how the aviation sector works. I know that passengers in nearly all instances want to land in the capital city, but we cannot take our eyes off Ireland's other airports. They are national assets. They need to be sweated more and used more before we look at the Dublin solution. Some funding streams need to be clarified for those airports so they can plan into the future.

Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy and appreciate the points he made about aviation policy nationally. He has been a strong, consistent and persistent advocate for Shannon Airport and I also appreciate his comments on other airports, particularly Cork Airport-----

Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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I am very much a Shannon advocate.

Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----which he referenced in passing. Regional balanced economic growth is a key objective of the Government and connectivity is key to economic development. I take the Deputy's point in respect of the importance of regionally-based airports.

There is no question that the cap has to be lifted.

Ciarán Ahern (Dublin South West, Labour)
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What about the climate?

Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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Very often airlines dictate the pace in respect of where they want to fly into and out of. Capital cities all over the world tend to draw the highest volume of traffic and interest and that has implications for regional locations. As the Deputy will be aware, there was a mid-term review of the current programme for regional airports with high-level outcomes announced in July last year and a public consultation was then undertaken. Shannon Airport benefited to some degree from inclusion in that, along with Cork Airport, Ireland West Airport in Knock, Kerry Airport and Donegal Airport. They continue to be eligible for funding. The potential for the development of an Exchequer funded programme or a commitment to broadening the scope of that programme to airports that handle more than 1 million passengers, which would apply to Shannon Airport, is under consideration by the Minister and the Government. That is an outcome of the review and it is being progressed as a matter of priority. The development of an Exchequer funded start-up aid scheme for airlines to support strategic route development to and from the regions is also being considered. What can we do to incentivise airlines to fly into and out of the regions?

We have the 2015 national aviation policy, which established the policy framework for the development of the aviation sector in Ireland. Its principal goals remain valid. However, the Department of Transport has commenced preparatory work on revising that policy and the Minister hopes to publish that in 2026. It will update existing policy in response to developments in the aviation sector and will include a focus on maximising the use of our regional airports in line with commitments made in the programme for Government. In our Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity, the Government committed to developing a long-term strategy for Irish airports as part of the review of the national aviation policy, recognising the dependency risk of having a large share of Irish air traffic going through a single airport, as the Deputy articulated. There will be a lot of engagement on that.

Tourism Ireland is also keen to promote regional connectivity in terms of the utilisation of the assets we have in the regions.

Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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Thank you, Taoiseach.

Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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Shannon Airport in particular is a significant asset.

Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The Taoiseach knows that Shannon Airport is a huge political issue in the mid-west, not just in County Clare. I am chair of the Oireachtas Shannon Airport group, which has 22 members from Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann from the rank of Minister, Opposition Member and Senator across all parties. We meet quite regularly to focus on policies that will strengthen the airport because we recognise that when the Ryder Cup comes in 2027 and when Doonbeg hosts the Irish Open next year, we will need top quality infrastructure.

Dublin Airport Authority last year alone paid a €99 million dividend to the State. It would be worth looking at, not only for Shannon Airport, but for Cork Airport in the Taoiseach's county and Knock airport in Mayo, ring-fencing that dividend to be disbursed across Ireland's other airports. I would love to hear when we will get certainty on the regional airports forum because airports need to procure, plan and build for the future.

It cannot just be about Dublin's future story; we need to look at Ireland's other airports. I do not know how spurious or accurate this is, but Ryanair had plans to have a large jet-engine maintenance facility in Shannon. Michael O'Leary is putting the blame on the Government. I would like to know if there are any plans to reactivate that, because we could certainly do with that kind of activity in the mid-west.

Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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I appreciate the points the Deputy made. I also acknowledge that he is speaking on behalf of 22 Members of the Houses in respect of Shannon Airport. I dealt with the earlier part in terms of the review of aviation policy.

Regarding the tourism side of the equation, Tourism Ireland will develop a new strategic air access fund. There is potential to maximise opportunity there in terms of new air routes. The Deputy's overall point is well made. The Ryder Cup is a big win for the mid-west. It is going to be very exciting for sports tourism generally. There will be a huge economic spin-off from that and the Irish Open in Doonbeg. All of that will highlight the infrastructural needs of the area. We have invested a lot in infrastructure in the area to have preparedness for big events of that kind. I will revert to the Deputy in respect of the other issue he raised about the aircraft maintenance proposal. It is not in the gift of the State.