Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is an excellent amendment, and that was a very good question from Senator Walsh regarding the maintenance of competition within our ports. If I could deal with the amendment first, it is one that is very close to my own heart in terms of trying to drive and increase competition within our port sector, because I can see the benefit of it to our ports and to our country. I have to respectfully say to Senator Barrett that I am not in a position to accept it. The simple reason is that I have to recognise that if a port is integrated as a company into a local authority, it has its own board and its own autonomy and it is not up to me as Minister to get involved and to issue instructions as to how it conducts its business. I have to recognise its role as an independent board of directors.

All that being said, if I could give him some encouragement regarding the implementation of that report, which was one of the first things I brought to Cabinet shortly after I was appointed, I would point to the kind of change that is now happening in Shannon Foynes Port Company. It has reorganised how it provides stevedoring and has significantly modernised it. I point now to what is happening in Dublin Port. It has now published its own review and analysis of the Competition Authority's recommendations. It has published that on its website, so it is available for stakeholders and interested figures such as the Senator to see. It is now looking to incorporate the principles of the Competition Authority's report into how it plans to manage its estate in the future. The Competition Authority has indicated its broad support for what we are looking to do here by having ports of national significance in two different tiers as well as ports of regional significance, because it offers us a platform to develop more competition in the future.

On alternative ways to address the point the Senator has made, under other legislation I already have power as Minister to seek information from ports regarding how they operate. The statutory accountability of port companies to the Oireachtas transport committee is in place under section 40 of this Bill. Perhaps members of the transport committee could in future issue an invitation to the boards of companies to come in and explain to the Oireachtas what they are doing to implement the analysis and recommendations of the Competition Authority. I reassure the Senator that I and my Department are working to see the implementation of that report over time.

On the point Senator Walsh put to me, the answer will depend on how the port is integrated into the local authority. If it is integrated as an existing and stand-alone company, it will have to produce its financial accounts and an overview of how it is trading that will in turn allow the Senator and other public representatives to quiz it on how it is performing vis-à-visthe implementation of that report and its general trading.