(Mayo): I wish to share my time with Deputies Ring and Kenny.
The announcement yesterday evening by Ryanair that it will pull out of Knock Airport on 11 January is described in newspapers today as a boycott. Let us call it what it is. It is nothing other than sheer blackmail. Ryanair knows it has Knock literally over a barrel. Ryanair accounts for 90% of Knock air traffic business. Michael O'Leary and Ryanair know well that by pulling out of Knock, they will not just cripple Knock Airport, they will close it. Ryanair would like to have Knock Airport understand that they have always done Knock Airport a service or a favour. It was a service or a favour that paid Ryanair rich dividends. When Ryanair was a struggling company, the people of the west rallied and supported it. They paid, and still pay way above the going rate. While Ryanair offered cut price fares of £19.99 from Dublin to UK destinations, passengers to and from Knock paid an additional £120 or £130 to and from the same destinations. People paid this out of a sense of service and loyalty to Knock and Ryanair. Six months ago Ryanair had such an interest in the west coast that it was prepared to guarantee at least 750,000 passengers through Shannon each week provided it got a terminal at Dublin Airport, yet yesterday it pulled out of Knock because of an argument about a mere £6 extra per passenger. It is obvious that Knock is a pawn in a powerplay. I am appalled, but not surprised, by Ryanair's ruthlessness.
The Government has a clear responsibility here. Knock is an excellent facility, an international airport run on a shoestring, with staff double jobbing on modest pay. They provide an international airport service for a fraction of Aer Rianta costs. Every penny received from duty free sales was ploughed back into support facilities and services and to reduce handling services. Without duty free sales, there was literally nowhere to go. Last week, the Government found £250 million overnight to defuse the budget controversy. I appeal to the Minister tonight to approve a subvention of £1 million for Knock to ensure that the vision of Monsignor Horan is not extinguished. This is a small price to pay to retain a service that links the remotest corner of rural Ireland with the capital of the United Kingdom in less than one hour. It links fathers working in Kilburn with their families in Kiltimagh and young people working in Glasgow with their fam ilies in Geesala. There is a social and economic dimension to this.
We need to look at the structure of boards of management. They leave much to be desired.