David Norris (Independent)

I have some sympathy with the Minister's position on this matter, particularly with regard to the responsibility of carriers. With the proliferation of franchising out – Servisair and Ryanair are also being bought in – it appears the Minister's position is reasonable to a certain extent and is also the prevailing situation in other jurisdictions. I am profoundly glad it is the carrier, whether Ryanair, Aer Lingus or the agent, Servisair, that is responsible and not the individual. I have had experience of this. I managed to get on an aeroplane some years ago in London and apparently I was not properly checked. When I looked at my passport I found I did not have a visa which was then required for the United States. It was in another passport and I was very relieved to find that British Airways was fined something like $20,000 and I was not.