Results 8,881-8,900 of 9,147 for speaker:Pat Breen

State Airports. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: I am astonished to hear the Minister claim that Aer Lingus believes Shannon has a strong transatlantic market. When Mr. Walsh was with Aer Lingus he removed many transatlantic services from the airport, particularly on the EI 111 route, from which a percentage of seats were transferred to Dublin Airport. What is the Minister doing to protect Shannon Airport? Government policy is to encourage...

State Airports. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: That is a different story to do with competition. It is on the record that Mr. Barrot has no problem with Ireland having its own bilateral agreement. The Minister has done nothing to protect Shannon Airport. In a recent report, Tourism Ireland stated that an open skies policy would result in Shannon's transatlantic business becoming seasonal. The chambers of commerce report, by Mr. Dukes and...

State Airports. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: The Minister would do so.

State Airports. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: The Minister's claims are typical of his Government colleagues' attempts to drive a wedge between the people of Shannon and Cork. This will not happen because the people of Cork and Shannon will bond on this issue.

State Airports. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: The chambers of commerce report stated that Cork and Shannon airports would be the big losers in an open skies agreement. A bilateral agreement is there not just to protect Shannon but also Aer Lingus as it is a small carrier.

State Airports. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: It is not. I welcome Ryanair's developments in the airport. However, it is important that we do not put all our eggs in the one basket. Shannon accounts for 44% of the transatlantic business. This will be eroded in an open skies system as the large transatlantic carriers will concentrate on where the big business is, namely, Dublin Airport. I agree marketing is important. However, if the...

State Airports. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Why not arrange for an environmental impact statement?

Rail Network. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: It was before the election.

Rail Network. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Ask the Minister of State. He will have an answer.

Rail Network. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: He went in the right direction.

Air Services. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Is the Minister interfering with Government policy when he interferes with the current bilateral agreement? The reports we hear from Washington and Dublin mention a three year lead-in period for the ending of the agreement. Can the Minister comment on that?

Driving Tests. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: While we have more technical checks as part of the driving test, is this slowing down the process as a result? Will the waiting list for driving tests become longer? If so, will the Department of Transport employ more testers in future to compensate for that?

Rail Services. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Will the new rail carriages be larger than the existing ones? Currently, at peak times, particularly on the Dublin-Cork and Dublin-Limerick routes, there is standing room only. This is so at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Will Iarnród Éireann increase the number of carriages or will the carriages be larger? How old is the existing intercity fleet? Have these carriages passed their sell-by date and, if...

Air Services. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Question 29: To ask the Minister for Transport when a decision on the future funding options for Aer Lingus is expected; his views on whether the delay in taking this decision is having a negative impact on the future financial viability of the airline; the outcome of his recent discussions with Aer Lingus; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9705/05]

Air Services. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Does the Minister consider the Airbus A330, which is used on transatlantic routes, a suitable replacement for existing aircraft given that many carriers are choosing smaller aircraft for those routes? For example, Continental Airlines uses a Boeing 757 with much less capacity. The Minister stated there were opportunities for Aer Lingus to open new routes to 20 different destinations in the...

Air Services. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: He might want to answer.

Road Safety. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Will the Minister outline if funding is allocated this year for the Garda traffic corps? Can he comment on the AGSI conference held yesterday where some gardaí said there was significant pressure on them to produce high levels of speeding offence detections? Does the Minister think gardaí are catching the right people? Does he think they are catching the culprits?

Pupil-Teacher Ratio. (24 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise this matter. It is particularly appropriate this week when the INTO invited Oireachtas Members to visit schools throughout the country to see at first hand the conditions therein. I and all my colleagues in County Clare believe that thousands of children in primary schools in Clare are in classes which are well in excess of the national...

Written Answers — Ministerial Responsibilities: Ministerial Responsibilities (23 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Question 34: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children her views on the failure of political leadership in her Department between 2000 and 2004. [9517/05]

Written Answers — Hospital Services: Hospital Services (23 Mar 2005)

Pat Breen: Question 119: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the recommendations of the radiotherapy report which have been implemented; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9516/05]