asked the Minister for Transport and Power if, in view of the hardship which a further increase in air fares would impose on Irish people residing in Britain who take their holidays in Ireland and the adverse effects on the tourist industry, he will request Aer Rianta, Aer Lingus and Bord Fáilte to pool their expertise in a co-operative operation designed to obviate the increased landing charges being sought by Aer Rianta.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Airport Landing Charges.
12.
Landing charges at Dublin, Shannon and Cork airports are subject to my approval as are the level of air fares to and from Ireland. In discharging these functions I am guided by the principle that as far as is reasonably practicable users should bear the economic cost of the services provided for them. The application of this principle must of course be balanced by consideration of the interests of the travelling public and of the tourist industry.
The airports, which are managed by Aer Rianta, are expected to operate commercially. This means that they must cover operational and other costs and, according as these increase, some increase in airport charges is unavoidable. I have asked Aer Rianta to minimise the impact of such increases by the pursuit of economies in their own operations and by the development of non-aviation activities. Aer Rianta have achieved a considerable measure of success in this direction and to that extent landing charges are lower than they otherwise would be. I expect Aer Rianta to continue to pursue all means of curtailing operational costs and maximising revenue from nonaviation commercial activities so as to avoid unduly burdening airlines and passengers.
Aer Lingus must also operate to commercial criteria and must therefore take account of cost increases in proposing fare levels. Here again I emphasise the importance of curtailment of costs and the pursuit of counterbalancing revenue from related and ancillary activities. I am satisfied that the increases that have taken place in Aer Lingus fares have been unavoidable.
There is close liaison between Aer Lingus, Aer Rianta and Bord Fáilte on all matters of common interest, including the promotion of traffic, the standard of facilities, the development of incentive packages and so on. It would be unreal to expect that their joint efforts would be effective in obviating the need for increases in charges, but I agree that no effort should be spared to keep down the cost of travel to Ireland. In this connection, I should point out that the level of standard fares between Ireland and the UK is the lowest in Europe on a pence per mile basis on comparable routes. Moreover, in addition to the normal fares, there are special fares and arrangements designed to provide a wide range of choice for persons and families travelling from Britain.