Hayes slams steering group appointments

MAYOR of Clare, Pat Hayes, has said he is concerned about the pending loss of Aer Rianta International to Shannon. He has also criticised the decision not to appoint any representative of Clare County Council to the steering group, or the two subcommittees of that Steering Group; which has been created to examine the restructuring of Shannon Airport or Shannon Development.

“The proposed position regarding the retention of Aer Rianta International by the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) does not appear to be included in the terms of reference of the steering group. This is troubling considering the group was established and nurtured in Shannon and contributes tens of millions of euro to the DAA. County Clare and the wider region has every right to demand that it be shown a proper and adequate return on its investment in, and development of, a highly profitable enterprise,” he said.
He expressed “profound disappointment” that the county council has no representative on the three groups established to oversee the restructuring of Shannon Airport and Shannon Development.
“It is unacceptable that Clare’s key management authority has been excluded from a process whereby the county’s primary infrastructure asset is being restructured,” he said.
“No local authority representative is on any of the three groups tasked with formulating a strategy for the restructuring of the airport and Shannon Development. While I welcome the fact that the Government has acted on Clare County Council’s request that the groups be established without delay, it is very concerning that no consideration appears to have been given to the inclusion of a representative from the local authority.
“The council has repeatedly stressed the critical requirement for its involvement in decisions which will determine the future of Shannon. It is difficult to see how the new entity that is being created will help to achieve strong regional development, when key policy makers such as Clare County Council, particularly in its role as planning authority for Clare, are excluded from the restructuring process. The council has spent a considerable amount of time and resources in formulating its County Development Plan, which includes special provisions for Shannon Airport and the surrounding lands and on various submissions on the future structure for Shannon Airport,” Councillor Hayes added.
“I would ask the Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar and the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton to explain why the decision was taken to not appoint a council representative to any of the three groups,” he concluded.