Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, to the House. I am sure he is aware of the serious blow inflicted by Aer Lingus on Shannon Airport last week with the announcement it was going to close its base there permanently. Like others, I fully understand Aer Lingus is in a perilous situation financially, having lost €360 million last year and €100 million to date this year. However, this undermining of its commitment to Shannon is a further deterioration in the status of Shannon Airport.

I would point to the decision on the Shannon stopover in the early 1990s, the sale of Aer Lingus and the controversy over the Heathrow slots. Shannon, which is and has the status of an international airport with a fantastic terminal building has been continuously completely undermined. As an island national, connectivity is extremely important. In light of Brexit and that we will be in a post-pandemic era, we will have to battle for our economic survival and development.We need proper, effective connectivity in order for the mid-west to flourish. There are many foreign direct investment companies based in the mid-west, particularly in the Shannon Free Zone and the surrounding area, that very much rely on an Aer Lingus presence, and particularly on connectivity between and Heathrow daily.

The announcement by Aer Lingus last week that it was going to close its base certainly does not augur well for the airline's commitment to Shannon. Without a base, one has to assume that we will not have early-morning flights to Heathrow whereby people who wish to do business in the City of London can fly there, do a day's business and come back that night. People who wish to fly to London and take connecting flights to other parts of Europe, to Asia and to the rest of the world will not have the option of early-morning flights.

Through the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, Aer Lingus has already received a loan of €75 million. I understand it is in the process of drawing down a further €75 million. This will amount to a loan of €150 million from the fund. I also understand that Aer Lingus is in negotiations with the Government regarding a €150 million bailout in order for it to survive. The company must survive. It is critical from an Irish perspective and to secure connectivity. If, however, we are to write the cheque, it cannot be a blank cheque. We need commitments. First, we need a long-term commitment from Aer Lingus that it will keep the Heathrow slots to create and maintain connectivity between Shannon and Heathrow. Second, we need a commitment from the airline that it will continue the flights to Heathrow and continue its transatlantic services to connect the mid-west region to North America. This connectivity has been critical to the foreign direct investors based in the mid-west and doing business in Shannon. It is also important from a tourism perspective. The whole mid-west benefits enormously from American visitors, particularly those from North America but also those from the rest of America. They spend billions of euros in the mid-west every year. This is critical. Aer Lingus will have to guarantee it in the long term if it gets the bailout. Third, and equally important, the airline will have to be persuaded to reverse its decision to close its base in Shannon. These are three requests I am making of the Minister of State in return for the Government giving Aer Lingus the €150 million plus it needs to continue operating.