Eugene Murphy (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Like Senator Buttimer, I extend the fáilte ar ais go dtí an Teach seo to the Minister of State. She has been here on numerous occasions and I fully acknowledge that she is in touch with the situation and is doing her best to handle it. We do not get snow and frost in this country very often and when it happens it throws down a challenge. To be fair to everybody involved, we are not like countries that are dealing with these issues all the time. Having said that, we need to make sure the Dublin Airport Authority has the capacity to de-ice and prepare for extreme weather events to maintain key connectivity through aviation. We know how important that is on this little island, particularly at Christmas or during the summer.

State agencies are established by law. They are resourced and people are appointed to senior positions. There is an obligation on them to be prepared and to respond to situations such as these. That said, Dublin Airport is not the only airport, as the Minister of State noted, that has had challenges during this period. Part of the problem was due to Manchester and Heathrow airports having issues. They had significant challenges and these spilled over into Dublin Airport. We should acknowledge that as well. There was severe fog and snow in the UK, which forced airlines to cancel flights causing disruption at Dublin Airport.

I am aware the Minister of State and her officials engage regularly with DAA senior management in relation to the be winter-ready operation, focusing particularly on security screening operations, which were among the issues experienced over the summer period. Senator Buttimer is right that none of us likes to be discommoded when travelling by air. We are on deadlines and we have to get to other places. I have seen people who get delayed at airports getting very frustrated. For those with families, it is extraordinary to be delayed at an airport and have to hang around for hours.

In some parts of the country, people are saying the county roads and footpaths have not been gritted. This is because we are not ready every winter, even though we have lots of salt to ensure certain roads can be gritted. If Dublin Airport Authority believes I am wrong on this, that is fine, but in my view, the DAA has not got up and running again as it should have since Covid-19. The staffing levels are not sufficient, as Senator Buttimer stated. The Minister of State had some pretty good news in that respect but they are still not up to the level needed. What sort of deal are the people working in the airport getting? These are very important people running a very significant part of industry. They, and all the emergency services, should be paid and looked after well. Is the DAA offering them a good deal or is there a difficulty in trying to get people to work? I acknowledge that having 800 people attend a workshop is positive for employment in the future and hopefully that will have good results. However, I wonder if these people are being treated well enough. They are a vital part of keeping our society going, not alone at Christmas but throughout the year. Dublin Airport is an extremely busy spot.

As regards dealing with the weather, I know from somebody inside the airport that there was a massive issue with de-icing. The runway was de-iced and before the planes were able to use the runway, the ice had formed again. As the Minister of State said, they had to be de-iced a second time.That is an extraordinary challenge and safety has to be a priority. In general, I am satisfied the Minister of State is doing her best. I know she is keeping a close eye on the situation coming up to Christmas. We do not know how the weather will be. Met Éireann seems to say it will go this way or that way and we could still have frosty, cold weather. I know the Minister of State is in touch with DAA, which I appreciate, but does the authority need to take a look at itself with regard to employing people again? It is important to have the exact number of people who are needed in the system to keep it flowing and working properly.