Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I express some concern about No. 4 on the Order Paper. I acknowledge that the Leader is less than enthusiastic about these motions in which we seek to curtail the time in which the President can consider legislation. This relates to low pay and I do not know what the urgency is. The President had a distinguished academic record in dealing with income distribution and poverty matters when he was in the sociology department in UCG. I am mindful that the last time we were asked to do this was in regard to Eircode. By a motion of the House on 1 July 2015, the President was asked to hurry up his consideration of that but I am sure that had he been allowed the time to consider it, he could have pointed out, as a Clare man, that Shannon Airport is located in County Clare even though Eircode thinks it is in County Limerick. We should not devalue the contribution of Uachtarán na hÉireann.Nor should the House be bypassed where bureaucrats cannot get their act together and submit legislation in time for the President to consider it.

We have also, through the Joint Committee on Transport and Communications, a letter from Aer Lingus today declining to come to a meeting of that committee tomorrow on the grounds of complexity and the Irish Takeover Panel's rules. In the absence of the appearance of Aer Lingus, it is urgent that the Minister should come in to the House. That excuse was used by senior civil servants in the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. All that is left to defend the interests of the consumer now is the European Commission. We should have the views of this House on the competition policies that arise from this hostile and anti-competitive takeover of our airline by British Airways. Despite all the PR for which the advisers earned €30 million, all we got was a one-page document of approximately 1,000 words which leaves Ireland seriously exposed to monopoly. We need to have an input because some reports, no doubt also leaked by the two airlines, have stated that the EU competition staff would make up their minds this week. The Aer Lingus refusal to turn up is strategic and the matter should be debated in the House. I hope that the Leader will ask the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, to come in today to tell us what steps he is taking to restore competition in Irish aviation after the hostile takeover of Aer Lingus by British Airways.