Written Answers. - Regional Airports.
Bernard Allen
Question:
55
Mr. Allen
asked the
Minister for Public Enterprise
if she will make a statement on the recent comment made by the chief executive of the IDA that flight services to airports outside Dublin are a major impediment to job creation.
[22784/97]
I am always very conscious of the infractructural needs of the regions in terms of promoting balanced economic development for Ireland.
The development of facilities at Cork and Shannon airports has been facilitated by the provision of capital investment programmes of £18 million and £28.5 million respectively. These programmes are now under way and are expected to be completed by 2001. The programme at Cork consists principally of upgrading runway and passenger terminal facilities while the main element of the programme at Shannon relates to a major refurbishment and expansion of the passenger terminal.
The regional airports are perceived as an important part of the local economic infractructure and facilitate quick access to the regions for tourist and commercial/business traffic. On this basis, these airports received Exchequer aid for basic priming infrastructure in the early 1980s and also European Regional Development Fund aid of £10.43 million under the Operational Programme for Peripherality 1989-93.
Currently, in order to assist in the marketing and promotion of services to the regional airports, the Exchequer has put in place funding amounting to £2.35 million over the years 1996-99. The Department has also introduced a scheme of Exchequer subvented air services in order to improve access to the regions from abroad through the network of air services operating to and from Dublin. The Government recently decided to extend the scheme in relation to Kerry, Galway and Sligo for a further three years.
In line with the Government's commitment in the programme for Government to support the network of regional airports, I recently secured the Government's approval to make a total of £5 million of Exchequer funding available for residual infrastructural improvements at the regional airports in Donegal, Galway, Knock, Sligo and Waterford in 1998. This funding will facilitate the completion in 1998 of essential upgrading of the infrastructure and facilities at these airports, thereby enhancing the prospects of attracting additional air services and tourism to these regions.
The enhanced record of support for both the further development of the airports and the extension of subvented air services demonstrate the Government's determination that both air access outside Dublin and its subvented cost will play an important part in the drive to attract and sustain balanced regional economic development and the essential jobs that come with such development.
