I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Ahern, who is almost becoming a permanent fixture.
I raise the issue of the proposed development of Cork Airport which has been an ongoing saga for several years. The airport is one of the success stories of the south-west region. There is no doubt as to its importance to it. In recent years it has increased its passenger turnover which is already up by 10% this year. In effect, it is bursting at the seams and the story is entirely positive. People wish to come to the area. There is a groundswell of support from the public, the local business community as well as the international community to have the airport developed.
The airport is operated by a very committed staff and management. It is very well managed. This has been recognised, both nationally and internationally. A new home based airline, Jet Magic, has been launched recently and will announce further new routes from the airport tomorrow. This will be followed by announcements by British Midland and a new Spanish airline which intends to use the airport. The rate of growth in the Cork region is strongly reflected in the use of the airport. A recent economic impact study by UCC clearly showed the benefit to it, both financially and socially. It is a well known rule of thumb in the aviation industry that each 1,000 passengers results in one direct job and one-and-a-half indirect jobs to the region concerned.
I ask the Minister of State to outline to the House exactly what is the current position on the development of the airport, to which the Government has committed to record capital investment. While the plans have been put out to tender, the announcement of a contract is still awaited and there is some unease in the area as to whether the project is being long-fingered. Given the Government's commitment and the success story of the airport, as I have outlined, I hope we can have some clear time frame for the commencement of this work.
In recent months the airport has also been affected by new security restrictions which have impacted on it. In that context, it is vitally important that the existing infrastructural deficit is addressed in order to cater for new growth. I am confident that the plans brought forward will provide a first class international airport which is so badly needed and will be of tremendous benefit to the region in economic, business and social terms.
I hope the Minister of State will provide some good news to harness the existing goodwill and ensure the business community of the south-west region can look forward to significant development commencing in the very near future.