Jimmy Deenihan
Ceist:77 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the position regarding the future involvement of Aer Lingus on the Dublin-Kerry route; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28031/00]
Written Answers. - Air Services.
As the Deputy will be aware, the invitation to air carriers to tender for the Kerry-Dublin PSO route and for the other five PSO routes was published in the EU Official Journal on 16 September 2000. The closing date for submission of tenders was 17 October 2000. In all, four airlines, Aer Arann, Aer Lingus, Loganair and Irish Air Transport, submitted tenders covering the six PSO routes and in accordance with EU Regulation 2408/92, copies of the tenders have been sent to the EU Commission.
As this is a formal public tendering procedure conducted in accordance with the requirements of the EU regulation, the Deputy will, I am sure, appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me to involve myself in any way in the process. The public tender competition was open to all interested air carriers on a fair and equal basis. A period of two months must elapse after the deadline for submission of tenders before any selection is confirmed. Our aim is to secure the completion of all necessary procedures in time to ensure continuity of services on the Kerry PSO route when the current contract expires in mid-January 2001.