Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister and the assistance he has given to Shannon and the mid-western region to bring back connectivity between that area and the wider world. I also welcome his future appointments to the board of Aer Lingus.

I support Senator O'Toole in his call that the two appointees would come from the mid-western region in order that the interests of that area would be served and their points of view put across. I also support Senator Norris's call to question the commercial rationale behind management's decision to move from this route.

Some interesting facts emerge. Senator Kelly stated it takes a significant effort to get a person to change from one airline to another. The statistic he used was one in eight. Aer Lingus management should explain its actions, given that between 2000 and 2006 there was a reduction of 43% in traffic between Belfast and London while traffic on the Shannon to London route has grown in the same period.

I would also like to hear how Aer Lingus proposes to capture half of the traffic between Belfast and Heathrow while providing only one third of the flights on that route. This appears to be an attempt to get a square peg into a round hole. It is questionable how Aer Lingus will achieve this and realise more attractive fares than in Shannon, given that it is competing against an airline that controls two thirds of the flights on the Belfast to Heathrow route and 12% of the slots in Heathrow itself. The competing airline on the Belfast to Heathrow route will be able to up the ante and will literally put Aer Lingus out of business, as British Airways went out of business when it tried to take on that company on the Belfast to Heathrow route.

The impact on Aer Lingus of its revenues on the Dublin to Heathrow route must also be examined. These are questions the new board appointees must put to management. The fact that there is an overlap in the catchment area of Belfast and Dublin means that in many respects people will fly from Belfast to Heathrow rather than from Dublin to Heathrow with no net gain for the airline.

I would like to see the State appointees questioning the commercial rationale behind the company's decision to move from Shannon to Belfast. Any company should stay with a monopoly. If I were in business and I had a monopoly I would not move for love nor money. It beggars belief how Aer Lingus thinks it will succeed where British Airways, the world's largest airline, failed. The real question is whether the management of Aer Lingus is serving the company and its shareholders well by leaving a monopoly and going onto a competitive route. A reduction of 43% in traffic in the past five years shows demand is falling on that route. Allied to this, the fact that Aer Lingus's market share in Dublin will be affected by its proximity to Belfast also calls into question management's decision making.

I agree with the Minister that we must look forward and that the restoration of connectivity between Shannon and the rest of the world must remain a Government priority.