This article is from page 4 of the 2007-09-25 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
OPPONENTS of the Aer Lingus plan to move their four Shannon/Heath- row slots to Belfast are being urged to join a Dail protest being organised in advance of the Government debate on the issue tomorrow.
The Atlantic Connectivity Alliance (ACA) is urging Clare people to go to Dublin and join the protests outside
and in the public gallery of the Dail, wearing county colours if possible.
The debate is due to start around Spm and a spokesman for the ACA said that it is “vital that we have a big, big presence, at least 300-400 people in Dublin that afternoon, so please pass on the word, and use your own ‘sectoral networks’ to get as many people up there as possible”.
He added that the plan is to fill the
public gallery in the Dail to capacity, and to have a strong, visible presence outside Leinster House. “Already the Hotels Federation are running a poster campaign and are planning other elements for the day. We need other sectors to follow suit, so please feel free to get creative around this. It is important that everyone makes the effort to be in Dublin, for what is a critical moment in the campaign.”
After a meeting last week with Em- ployment, Trade and Enterprise Min- ister, Michael Martin in Shannon, the Alliance accused the Government of “failing to show it has the political will to prevent the loss of thousands of jobs across western regions due to the fall-out from Aer Lingus’ deci- sion to abandon the profitable Shan- non-Heathrow service”.
Following what the ACA described as a “frank and engaging” meeting the ACA stated that while it has no doubt about Minister Martin’s bona fide’s on the issue, it seriously ques- tions the political will of the majority of Government on this critical issue.
Said ACA spokesperson Ken Sul- livan, “the soundings from Govern- ment are still very clear; they say they are not for turning in relation to Aer Lingus but that is purely a mat- ter of political will, which they don’t seem to have right now.”
Speaking after a separate meeting of the ACA in the Glenlo Abbey Ho- tel, Galway, Alliance member and Galway Chamber representative Dr Chris Coughlan confirmed that a meeting was held in Shannon late last week with the Inter-Departmen- tal Group “but it merely confirmed suspicion that the group has a pre- determined agenda to substantiate Government claims that it cannot in- tervene in the Aer Lingus decision.”