This article is from page 1 of the 2007-08-21 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 1 JPG
TAOISEACH Bertie Ahern has bro- ken his silence on the Shannon/Hea- throw crisis to announce the setting up of a group to study the options for the airport and the region.
The news comes after a weekend protest in which almost 6,000 people took to the streets and marched along the Shannon dual carriageway to de- mand that the decision be reversed.
In his first public announcement since the controversial decision to axe the Heathrow flights at Shannon 14 days previously, the Taoiseach promised that an interdepartmen-
tal group of senior government of- ficials will be asked to examine all the available options for airline con- nectivity.
He repeated his reassurances yes- terday afternoon at a meeting with Brian O’Connell, Chairman of the Atlantic Way, regarding Shannon- London connectivity.
He stated that the report to be pre- pared for Government should clearly set out the options for supporting aviation connectivity for Shannon, the level of investment in the Shan- non region in the National Develop- ment Plan and Transport 21, and the implications of aviation connectivity
for companies.
O’Connell said that the message he brought the Taoiseach was one of “deep anger and concern” but that the meeting was “positive and construc- tive…this is a vital first step towards addressing the key issue of the slots and also the wider context of Shan- non’s global connectivity,” he said.
Ennis, Galway, Limerick and Shan- non chambers of commerce today gave a preliminary welcome to the Taoiseach’s announcement.
The four Chambers, who collec- tively represent 1,600 businesses with over 100,000 employees, said they will work closely with the group
but added that “the current decision by Aer Lingus, although question- able from a commercial and political point of view, is also the result of a much broader issue; the overall lack of regional up-to-date infrastructure which should have been in place at least three years ago.
“If the Government was truly com- mitted to balanced regional develop- ment, then the region would not be in this position today,” a spokesman Sr HKOe