Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 318: To ask the Minister for Transport when the next independent safety audit of the Irish Aviation Authority as mandated under section 32 of the Irish Aviation Authority Act 1993 will take place; the person who is commissioned to carry out this safety audit; if the audit will be made public; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36801/09]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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The Irish Aviation Authority Act, 1993 (Section 32(3)(a)) requires me, as Minister for Transport, to appoint a person to carry out an examination of the performance by the company of its functions in so far as they relate to the application and enforcement of technical and safety standards in relation to aircraft and air navigation every three years.

The IAA is also subject to frequent independent auditing of the same activities by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), Eurocontrol and more recently by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) which was established in 2003.

ICAO will conduct a comprehensive audit of Ireland's system for safety oversight of civil aviation early in 2010. Prior to the audit a very significant amount of information must be submitted to ICAO and my Department the IAA are intensively engaged in those preparations at present.

Earlier this month I announced my intention to amalgamate the safety regulation functions of the IAA and the Commission for Aviation Regulation with the planned new National Transport Authority. Detailed proposals will be developed to implement this decision in the coming months.

In light of the above, and of the need to ensure efficiency and value for money in the current economic climate, I do not propose to proceed with a further independent examination of the IAA at this time. The requirements under Section 32 of the 1993 Act will be considered in the context of the legislation I will bring forward to provide for the amalgamation of the IAA's safety regulatory functions into the National Transport Authority.