Transport department mysterious on Shannon taskforce appointment

THE Department of Transport has not responded to questions from The Clare Champion regarding complaints made about the inclusion of an individual on one of the new taskforces dealing with Shannon’s future.

It is understood a number of complaints have been made regarding the inclusion of one person. However, a request for information was made by The Clare Champion to the department on Monday but despite several assurances that the request would be dealt with, no information had been provided by the Department at the time of going to press on Wednesday evening.

While Fianna Fáil TD Timmy Dooley was reluctant to comment on any of the appointments, he was critical of the Government’s handling of the taskforce’s composition. “What I would say is that they have showed a sloppy approach to this.”

He claimed there was pressure to make local appointments, something that could undermine the credibility of the groups.

Deputy Dooley also said he would be unhappy if the focus at Shannon moved away from developing routes and increasing passenger numbers. “Fine Gael and Labour made commitments of what they would do for the airport and its customers and to date, they have not lived up to those commitments. The working group is to report at the end of the year and it looks as if there won’t be clear strategies for the enhancement of services or the development of routes. There seems to be a shift of focus onto ancillary aviation activity and ancillary aviation activity can be a positive thing but it shouldn’t be at the expense of passengers.”

Meanwhile, Clare Fine Gael TD Pat Breen met with the US Ambassador to Ireland, Dan Rooney, and a number of senior American politicians last weekend in Dublin, where he raised his concerns about plans to reduce the hours of operation of Shannon’s US Customs and Border Protection Preclearance Facility.

“I met with the US Ambassador to Ireland Dan Rooney and a senior congressional delegation, which included the majority whip Kevin McCarthy and seven of his US House of Representatives colleagues in the ambassador’s residence in the Phoenix Park in Dublin on Saturday afternoon last. I briefed the ambassador and the delegation on the Irish economy and eurozone crisis and among the bilateral issues we discussed was the US customs and border protection facility at Shannon Airport. We spoke about the importance of this facility and the strong relationship, which has developed between Shannon Airport and the United States. Following our meeting, the congress delegation agreed to raise my concerns regarding the implications that any reductions in the hours of the Shannon operation would have for Shannon Airport with their Homeland Security Department immediately after their return to the US.”