Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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Question 659: To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his policy on reducing airport charges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14086/12]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The Commission for Aviation Regulation (CAR) regulates airport charges levied at Dublin Airport since 2001. Airport charges at Cork and Shannon Airports are set by the relevant airport authority while charges at the six regional airports, which are owned and operated independently, are a matter for each airport concerned.

Within the limits of the overall price cap, the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) sets variable annual charges in respect of specific services such as passenger charges, aircraft charges etc. Under regulations I introduced last year, the DAA is required to consult on proposed changes to airport charges. This process has been completed in relation to 2012 charges with the result that there is no overall increase in charges at Dublin airport for 2012 relative to the price cap set by CAR for 2011. The 2012 price cap set by CAR is €10.76. The DAA has however, kept the headline charge at the 2011 rate of €10.43 which is 3.2 % below the cap for 2012.

The Jobs Initiative launched by the Government last year includes a three-pronged strategy to encourage inbound tourism. One element of this is a new growth incentive scheme introduced by the DAA. This scheme which is due to run from 2011-2014 was designed to encourage growth in passenger numbers. DAA recently announced that it will be paying a rebate of €1.5 million to the 30 airlines that grew their business from Dublin last year. Among those receiving rebates are Aer Arann, Aer Lingus, Etihad Airways, Lufthansa, Norwegian, SAS, Swiss, Turkish Airlines and US Airways.