Break-up 'puts regional airports at risk'

The break-up of Aer Rianta could have "disastrous implications" for the future of the State's eight regional airports, the Labour leader, Mr Pat Rabbitte, claimed in the Dáil.

Mr Rabbitte also said the Minister for Finance opposed legislation being brought forward on the break-up of the semi-state company until all the complexities were resolved. The Labour leader accused the Government of attempting to conceal this information.

But the Taoiseach insisted that "this Government has been totally supportive of regional airports, giving enormous subsidies to keep the airports open, year after year" and it was "totally incorrect" to say information was concealed.

Mr Ahern said there were "issues around Shannon and Cork where the people in those particular regions want to get autonomy. They want within the Aer Rianta structure to allow themselves have separate companies, where they can market their region and get flights to suit their own timescales so that they are not dependant on decisions made in Dublin".

Mr Rabbitte asked: "Why is the Minister for Transport proceeding against the advice of the Department of Finance, creating chaos in the immediate industrial relations environment, putting the regional airports at risk."

Referring to the Government decision in July to break up the semi-state body, the Labour leader said it "apparently prohibits exchequer funding in future for Shannon or Cork", as regional airports. This could mean that funding for the heavily subsidised regional airports would also be affected under competition laws.

"The competitive implications are disastrous for their knock-on effects for the eight regional airports and especially Kerry, Galway and Knock in particular," said Mr Rabbitte following comments by the Taoiseach that "every single seat" in regional airports was subsidised by the Government.

Mr Ahern said that "the enormous resources and aid that the Government is giving to the regional airports is what's keeping them open. Every single seat is highly subsidised and that's what's keeping the regional airports in this country going."

The Taoiseach added that "the considerable extension in the last few years to the number of flights there, is because of the huge subsidies that are given. Not one is viable except for those large subsidies."

Mr Rabbitte said the Taoiseach's remarks would "raise alarm" in regional airports. Quoting Mr Ahern's comment that "every single seat is subsidised", he asked: "What's going to happen when they're not subsidised and when the regulator will prevent them being subsidised?"

Mr Rabbitte claimed the Government had tried to conceal a memo from the Minister and Department of Finance that all issues involved in Aer Rianta's restructuring should be sorted before the Minister introduced legislation, and he quoted from the memo.