James Breen (Clare, Independent)
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Question 354: To ask the Minister for Transport if an impact study will be carried out into the effect which abolishing the bilateral agreement will have on Shannon Airport and the mid-west region; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that some companies have indicated they may be forced to re-locate when this agreement comes into place in November 2006; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12985/06]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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This matter has been raised in the House before and I indicated that open skies will be good for Irish tourism, aviation, business links and the economy generally. Open skies will give Irish airlines access to every city in the US, and enable them to negotiate with different airports to obtain the best commercial deals for new services. The additional access to the US as well as the increased numbers of US tourists into Ireland will greatly benefit Irish tourism, aviation and business links generally in all parts of the country.

A number of recent reports including the Brattle report for the European Commission, the report of the tourism policy review group to the Minister of Arts, Sport and Tourism, and the Air Transport Users Council, ATUC, of the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland report into open skies all support moving to open skies with the US, and emphasise the significant benefits to Ireland when this happens.

Irish airlines serve four US cities under the existing Ireland-US bilateral arrangement. Expanding services across the Atlantic is of great importance to the growth of Irish airlines and Irish tourism. Irish airports will also benefit from open skies, as the pent-up demand for services to Ireland will open up, and all Irish airports, under open skies, can compete for that business.

I am fully conscious of the concerns of those living and working in the Shannon region about the impact of any new arrangements. I stated from the beginning that I supported open skies, but that support was contingent on a suitable transitional arrangement for Shannon Airport. Shannon could have faced a sudden and early end to the Shannon stop arrangements without a suitable lead in time to open skies to allow the airport to prepare. Accordingly, I met the US Secretary for Transportation, Norman Mineta, on 9 November 2005 and we agreed on a transitional arrangement, which will be folded into any EU-US agreement. Ireland is the only EU country to secure transitional arrangements in the proposed EU-US agreement.

In addition to the extra time the transition arrangements will give Shannon to prepare for open skies, the Government's recently approved €34 billion transport investment plan, known as Transport 21, will greatly enhance the infrastructure of the Shannon region and broaden the catchment area of the airport through the completion of the Dublin to Limerick motorway and the building of the Atlantic road corridor, both of which will link to Shannon Airport, and the re-opening of the western rail corridor. A feasibility study of a Shannon rail link will examine linking Shannon Airport to both Limerick and Galway cities by rail.

I sought and obtained assurances from Aer Lingus that, in the context of a level playing field between the airline and its competitors, it will maintain the current level of transatlantic traffic, approximately 400,000 passengers a year, with regular year round scheduled services between Shannon and Boston and New York.

In announcing the agreement reached with the US authorities last November on a transitional arrangement for Shannon Airport in the context of the proposed EU-US open skies, I gave an undertaking to prepare, in consultation with my colleagues, the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism and the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, a tourism and economic development plan for Shannon and the west of Ireland. Accordingly, and in view of the benefits I have outlined, it is not necessary to carry out an impact study. Furthermore, I can see no reason companies in the mid-west area might be forced to relocate as a result of open skies in view of the benefits which will accrue.