Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for being present and taking the place of the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Deputy Naughton, whom I understand is attending a meeting in Dublin Airport. I call for balance in regional air routes in the context of what is happening in Dublin Airport. We must explore short-, medium- and long-term solutions. I tweeted over the weekend to encourage people to consider using regional airports and particularly Shannon Airport. It has the longest runway and the capacity to handle up to 4 million passengers annually. The numbers using the airport in the context of that overall capacity are low, but as we emerge from the impacts of Covid-19, the availability of flights and the numbers of passengers using them is increasing. It is good to see that happening.

A great deal of investment went into Shannon Airport during the Covid-19 pandemic. The security processes there now use scanners that allow passengers to put their bags right through. There is no need to take bags off for security personnel to examine. This development has significantly reduced the time taken to go through security at the airport. What happened in Dublin Airport over the weekend has caused reputational damage to Ireland. Even looking at the news headlines on Sunday evening, we heard from people from other countries saying they would never come back. This experience has caused reputational damage not just for Dublin Airport, but for our tourism industry nationwide. People come here because airlines, such as Ryanair and others, offer many cheap flights and encourage people to come here for long weekends or short holidays. People have been doing that and many are travelling more frequently because they could not do so during the worst of the pandemic. They might now be going away once a month or something like that.

It upset me to hear people on the television say they would not come back here. The Minister of State is from the regions. Waterford has its own airport, and we have Shannon on our doorstep. We also have airports in counties Kerry and Mayo. We have many fine regional airports. When I posted my tweet encouraging people to use these regional airports, it got more than 1,000 likes. We often see people liking tweets, but then giving out in the comments. The comments from people over the weekend, however, were good and positive. It is encouraging. Equally, however, I read a tweet from someone who drove from Clare to Dublin Airport to go to London for the weekend. That flight cost €32. If the person had flown from Shannon Airport, the equivalent cost would have been €303 one way. That is a big cost differential. This situation will not solve the problems experienced at Dublin Airport. Flights to many holiday destinations could be given to the regional airports to operate. People from the mid-west or the west should not have to go to Dublin to be able to access these flights. Equally, with business flights, there are no European connections from Shannon Airport. This is something the Government must consider.We encourage regional development for job creation and education but not for flights. The Government needs to sit down with the regional airports and the DAA and work out a plan.

While I know the DAA was short-staffed, I understand it has taken on 300 staff and is only short another 70. If those 70 staff were in place, we would still have had queues. This morning, I saw that some of my colleagues visiting the European People's Party, EPP, congress got through to their flights in two hours or thereabouts. We need a long-term plan and to use our regional airports because we cannot afford to have reputational damage to our tourism sector.

On a final point, some people are being very abusive to staff at the airport. It is not the fault of staff so people should be courteous towards them.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator for raising this important issue. She did not say anything I disagreed with. I am taking this Commencement matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, who, as the Senator pointed out, is attending meetings on this very issue.

What we witnessed at Dublin Airport last weekend was totally unacceptable. The Government and Minister are very dissatisfied with the current situation and the impact that these unacceptable delays are having on passengers.

This is an operational matter for the Dublin Airport Authority which has the statutory responsibility to operate, manage and develop Dublin Airport, including all the operations associated with screening and security at the airport. The Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, and Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, met the CEO of the Dublin Airport Authority, Dalton Philips, and his management team first thing yesterday morning. The Ministers expressed their immense disappointment and frustration at the unacceptable scenes at Dublin Airport over the weekend. Reputational damage was caused last Sunday. The images went viral very quickly. My niece flew out of Dublin Airport at 6.30 a.m. on Sunday and it took her three hours to get through to her flight. That was before the peak.

I agree wholeheartedly with the Senator on balanced regional development, which is the cornerstone of the programme for Government. Sometimes issues arise in the capital city where more than 1.5 million people live. The Senator spoke about the various airports. There is positive mood music in Waterford today in respect of the extension to the runway. There is no doubt, however, that many of our regional airports, in Cork, Shannon, Kerry and Knock, are underutilised at times.

I will outline the response to the situation that gave rise to the events last Sunday. In seeking to address the security staff shortage at the airport, Dublin Airport Authority has stepped up recruitment and to date has successfully recruited 300 additional staff. As the Senator stated, a further 70 security staff are required. The number of new staff being on-boarded at the same time as passenger numbers are increasing is bringing fresh challenges. It is vital that staff maintain operational security compliance as a priority.

I am advised that the DAA put a number of additional measures in place since queueing issues first arose in March, including initiating a senior management task force, redeployment of staff to manage queues and assist with better presentations to security, and the opening of terminal 1, or T1, security lanes on a 24-7 basis. Until last weekend, these measures were having an impact. In general, the majority of passengers were getting through security in less than 45 minutes, even in busy periods. However, last weekend, on Sunday in particular, wait times fell well short of any acceptable level.

To return to the point raised by Senator Byrne, there are great opportunities for people living in the south of the country to use Cork and Shannon airports. When people compare and contrast the costs of flight from the various airports, it sometimes encourages them to travel to seek the best value.

I was struck over the weekend by how upset some people were. Families with young babies, elderly people and people travelling to funerals were unable to make their flights, which is unacceptable.I know many of the Senator's colleagues have said similar to what she has said about having other airports in the country. Every effort should be made to utilise them. There is no doubt that nobody wants to see what happened last Sunday happen again. We are facing into a very busy bank holiday period. I reiterate the point the Senator made. Staff are under pressure. It is a very difficult situation and it is very important that they are treated with respect at all times.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for her response. This issue is mainly with regard to Dublin Airport and what is happening there. I will be speaking to the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, about this. This is an opportune time for the Government. We have to put in place a plan, whether it be a five-point plan or another type of plan, to develop regional balance for flights. The Minister of State, the Minister and their teams need to sit down with representatives from all of the airports. They need to look at the various routes available. They have to take routes from Dublin Airport and give them to the other airports. It may not happen in the short term but in the long term this needs to happen. This is obvious from what we saw last Sunday.

We need to put in place proper regional balance to encourage people and to support those airports that need support. Airlines such as Aer Lingus and Ryanair need to be given incentives to give people flights at competitive rates. We also need to provide connectivity from the regional airports. We need business connectivity to Europe and Heathrow. Some routes at regional airports have flights only two or three times a week. They need to be daily.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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The passenger experience at Dublin Airport is falling far short of the service our citizens and visitors should expect at our largest State airport. The Government recognises the undue stress these unacceptable delays are having on passengers. It is like a perfect storm. People have not been able to holiday abroad for the past two and a half years. We have seen similar pressures in the Passport Office. People want to enjoy a holiday if they can at all. Some people are travelling for work. Some people are travelling because of a family bereavement and they have no choice.

The Minister and the Minister of State are working extremely hard to make sure what happened last Sunday will not be replicated. The challenges faced by the DAA at the airport are expected to continue until the end of June when all new recruits are expected to be in place and trained. The Minister, Deputy Ryan, and the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, will continue to engage with Dublin Airport Authority on a daily basis to ensure all that can be done is being done for passengers using Dublin Airport. I will certainly bring back the Senator's comments. I agree with them wholeheartedly. There is an opportunity to grow and develop regional airports, as we have already said. It is something that should be looked at as soon as possible. There is no point having a pinch point in one area when there is capacity in others. Pricing will have to be taken into account. It is very important that we acknowledge the busy staff who worked in the airport last Sunday and over the weekend.

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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I thank the Minister of State. We appreciate her taking time out of her busy schedule to be with us in the Seanad. It is always appreciated and always valued.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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It is always a pleasure to come to the Seanad.