Martin Conway (Fine Gael)

It is not often that we have a good news story day in this House. The announcement by the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport and the Minister for Social Protection on Shannon Airport and Shannon Development is a good news story. This should have happened years ago but, thankfully, it will happen now. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport announced earlier that Shannon Airport will finally be separated from the Dublin Airport Authority. Shannon Development will lose it tourism remit to Fáilte Ireland and its foreign direct investment to the IDA, where they should have been in the first place. What is left of Shannon Development will merge with Shannon Airport to create a new entity that will drive job creation in the region. The new body will run the airport and this will act as a stimulus to attract aviation-related industries to Shannon industrial estate and the airport. Shannon Airport pioneered aviation in Ireland going back to Dr. Brendan O'Regan years ago. We have a proud history of aircraft leasing, maintenance and related industries. Hopefully, through the two Ministers and the new entity, a world class aviation centre will be created in Ireland. Such a centre does not exist in Europe and there is no reason Ireland cannot champion itself as an aviation hotspot and a place with first-class knowledge, the best mechanics, engineers and technicians and financiers in the aircraft industry. The new entity will in time create thousands of jobs in the Shannon area.