Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 June 2008
449 Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Transport if he has reviewed the operation of the public service obligation in the airline sector; his views on the long term status of the Dublin Kerry PSO; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23547/08]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the terms of Council Regulation (EEC) No. 2408/92 of 23 July 1992, a Member State may, in limited circumstances, impose a Public Service Obligation (PSO) in respect of an air service and may subvent that service if no airline is prepared to operate it on a commercial basis. The main objective of the PSO programme is to provide air services to pre-specified standards for regions regarded as remote or under-developed and where it would not be commercially viable for air carriers to provide such services.
Existing contractual arrangements for services linking Dublin with the regional airports in Kerry, Galway, Knock, Sligo, Donegal and Derry are due to expire on 22 July 2008.
Prior to the commencement of the procurement process for the provision of air services on these routes after that date, a review of the existing programme was carried out in my Department. I subsequently decided that tenders would be sought for the operation of services for the three-year period beginning on 22 July 2008 on the basis of maintaining the existing network and with the specifications for the routes (timetables, frequencies, capacity etc) largely unchanged from those which apply to the current round.
Following an EU public tendering process, contracts to provide scheduled air services on the six PSO regional air routes for the new contractual period were awarded to three airlines, involving a total maximum contracted subvention of €44.625 million. A further review of all of the PSO air routes will be carried out towards the end of that period before any decisions are taken about subsequent arrangements and it would not therefore be appropriate to comment at this stage on the long term status of any particular PSO route.
