Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 26 Jan 2000

Vol. 513 No. 1

Written Answers. - Air Services.

Nora Owen

Ceist:

206 Mrs. Owen asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the status of the strategy plan for Aer Rianta; the decisions, if any, she has made for future developments in the company; the discussions, if any, her Department has had on the provision of an additional runway at Dublin Airport; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1832/00]

Minister for Public Enterprise (Mrs. O'Rourke):

I have recently received the report of the advisers appointed by myself and the Minister for Finance to examine and evaluate the full range of recommendations made to me by the board of Aer Rianta in respect of the company's future strategic direction.

I am carefully considering the recommendations in that report, and will present it to Government and publish it shortly. I will subsequently consult with my Cabinet colleagues in the normal way and then report to Government with specific recommendations in regard to the future of Aer Rianta. It would not be appropriate for me at this point to speculate on what those recommendations will be.

As regards the provision of an additional north parallel runway at Dublin Airport, the position is that in discussions with my Department, Aer Rianta has outlined its indications that additional runway capacity is estimated to be required towards the end of the decade. I understand from the company that there is a technical committee comprising Aer Rianta, the airlines, the Irish Airline Pilots Association and the Irish Aviation Authority which is considering and evaluating runway capacity issues at Dublin Airport and the options for ensuring that the needs of future traffic growth can be facilitated in a timely fashion.