Vol. 423 No. 1
248 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Tourism, Transport and Communications if, in respect of the recommendations of the Culliton Committee, she will outline, for each recommendation concerning her Department, the action, if any, which she has already taken or proposes to take, the changes involved and the cost of such action; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
I would refer the Deputy to the reply given today on this matter by the Minister for Industry and Commerce, in which he sets out the overall position on the implementation of the report of the Industrial Policy Review Group (Culliton Committee) and the work of the task force established to oversee that implementation. The Committee made recommendations in relation to three specific areas which come under the aegis of my Department — Aviation Policy, Postal Charges and competition in Telecommunications Services.
The first report of the task force noted that my Department's policy has been and continues to be in line with the Culliton recommendation that the Government continue to press for the further deregulation of European aviation including air freight services. The measures adopted at the recent EC Transport Council come into effect from 1 January 1993 and will give air carriers greater freedom as to capacity, pricing and market access, effectively creating a Single EC Market in air transport. The criteria for the licensing of air carriers have also been harmonised.
The Culliton Report also made recommendations in relation to postal services and telecommunications services and both these areas are due to be dealt with in the second report of the task force which will be submitted to Government shortly. Accordingly it would not be appropriate for me to comment further pending the Government's consideration of the task force's recommendations.
