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Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: Members have all got to be conscious of time. Will Mr. Jacobs speed up on his last few slides? I am sure we will cover other matters when members make their contributions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: I thank Mr. Jacobs for his comprehensive opening presentation. Members are aware that the speaking slots outlined at the start were slightly incorrect. They have since been corrected. The first member to contribute will be Deputy Matthews. We have put nine minutes on the clock, so it is nine minutes plus one.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: I thank the Deputy for sticking to his time. Deputy Crowe is next.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: Do not leave out Kerry or you will get in trouble.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: It is good to have that commitment. I thank Deputy Crowe. I am up next myself, and I thank Mr. Jacobs for coming in. We were very anxious to bring him in, in light of the cap. I raised the point in the Seanad with Senator Doherty that the last thing a parent wants is to not be able to see their child coming in. Mr. Jacobs said he would manage the cap, stay within the limits and so on....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: That is from last year, from around 27 million to approximately 32 million. If the same level of growth happened - which would not even be the same percentage growth because the figure is bigger and it will be a smaller percentage - we would be looking at 37 million next year. We would be looking at nearly 40 million next year. At the moment, we are talking about the planning process to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: It could be 36 million or 37 million.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: The airport is nearly at 34 million this year.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: Regarding this third terminal on the western side, what are Mr. Jacobs's thoughts on that? I am not talking about the land ownership. Say the DAA owned all of that land, at the moment, would it be thinking about putting facilities over there? It is talking about having new stands in that area, and general aviation. I might touch on the cap with reference to Deputy Crowe's point. Surely...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: What did the report the former Minister, Shane Ross, got say about that particular terminal?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: We have kind of all agreed that we should be looking at the medium term because my concern - and it is a reasonably valid concern based on the bounceback - is that if the airport has gone up 5 million in one year and is close to the 32 million cap, we may get even 4 million next year. Mr. Jacobs is saying that demand is softer but I am not sure how much evidence there is for that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: Mr. Jacobs's point is that caps do not work. They have not worked in Schiphol and they have not worked in other places. It is likely that Ireland Inc. will lose out rather than Shannon and Cork airports gaining from a cap that will have airlines saying they are coming to Europe but will not go to Ireland any more or else that they will base aircraft in other parts of the world where they...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: In other countries?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: It is in all our interests that people come to Ireland Inc., regardless of where they land but yes, we should be trying to spread it better than we do at the moment. My concern is that the board of DAA - and Mr. Jacobs is the chief executive who presenting to and dealing with the board - is really not looking beyond 40 million.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: That is, more or less, a two-year process, excluding objections. Is December 2025 the earliest the DAA can get that permission?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: They are all announced. They all were not in last year's figures. They all will be in next year's figures, plus population growth. I am wondering why Mr. Jacobs thinks demand next year will not go up similar to what it did this year with all these extra airlines, all these extra flights, plus Ryanair's ability to drop aircraft one place or the other. If Dublin had the capacity, I am sure...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: Even though I am in the Chair, I will not manipulate the time. I will make two points, and I might come back in later if we have time. On the private jet issue, in terms of numbers, I do not see why the DAA would be cutting that off. It is minimal. Twenty jets would probably be the size of a flight from Donegal.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: My final point is on public transport access. I know people who have posted on Twitter or X, whatever it is called, who were trying to get the Aircoach at 4 a.m. They dropped their daughter down to the Talbot Hotel in Stillorgan at 4 a.m. and the bus driver said that the service was pre-book only, the bus was full and they should get a cab. Equally, as Mr. Jacobs will be aware, people post...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion (22 Nov 2023)

Gerry Horkan: I thank Mr. Jacobs for all of that. We wish him well in all the DAA's future developments.