James Breen (Clare, Independent)
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Question 251: To ask the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism if he supports the view of Tourism Ireland in relation to changing the bilateral status of Shannon Airport; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27493/05]

John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Fianna Fail)
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My colleague, the Minister for Transport, Deputy Cullen, is responsible for aviation policy. From a tourism perspective, I have made my views on this issue known on many occasions. I support the renegotiation of the Ireland-US Bilateral Air Agreement as a means of enhancing the benefits to Ireland from additional air services and enhanced visitor flows to both Shannon and Dublin. However, I am also conscious of the need to provide for an orderly phasing out of the Shannon stop requirements, thereby enabling the new airport authority in Shannon to build up its overall business and develop a medium to long-term strategy to optimise the significant potential for expansion on the transatlantic route.

This was the clear recommendation arising from the tourism policy review group report — New Horizons for Irish Tourism — and the tourism action plan implementation group has re-iterated the urgent need to resolve this issue. In that context, the views expressed by Tourism Ireland's Chief Executive at a recent hearing of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Arts, Sport and Tourism were completely in accordance with my own. Ireland needs to ensure it is ideally positioned to capitalise on US tourism business and Shannon Airport is, and will remain, a key player in bringing this business to Ireland and the west, in particular.