Legislation to lift Dublin Airport passenger cap expected by July

Transport minister Darragh O'Brien sets out timeline to lift 32m passenger cap

The Government plans to enact a law by mid-July to lift a cap on passenger numbers at Dublin Airport,  transport minister Darragh O'Brien said on Friday.

The Government plans to enact a law by mid-July to lift a cap on passenger numbers at Dublin Airport,  transport minister Darragh O'Brien said on Friday.

The Government is racing to lift the 32m passenger-per-year cap, which is ​currently suspended pending a European Court ruling. 

Dublin Airport overshot the limit by 4m ​passengers last year.

"It's my intention, if we can at all, with a fair wind, to get the legislation passed through the Dáil and Seanad by the summer recess, which is the middle of July," Mr O'Brien said.  "If it's not that, it will be early September," he added.

CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY HUB

The number of passengers at Ireland's main airport was capped at 32m by planners in 2007, in part to avoid local road congestion.

Some local residents support capping passenger numbers at the airport, which carries around 80% of the country's air traffic.

Warning about emissions

Environment groups have warned its removal would weaken oversight of a high-emission sector.

But the measure has been opposed by airline bosses like Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary, who warn it would damage the country's economy and harm plans to make Dublin an international aviation hub.

"Dublin Airport is of strategic national importance for our country, and the cap needs to be removed," Mr O'Brien said.

US airlines' complaint 

US airlines have also opposed the cap, prompting local carriers to warn that the US government could retaliate and restrict transatlantic flights from Dublin if the cap is not quickly scrapped.

Industry group  Airlines for America filed a complaint with ⁠the US department of transportation in January, accusing Ireland of breaching an EU-US agreement ​granting airlines the right to operate in each jurisdiction and asking it to curtail Irish carriers' access ​to the US if the cap is not scrapped.

O'Brien said the US government was satisfied with the timeline he had laid out.

European airlines have warned they could face jet fuel shortages within weeks as a result of supply disruptions triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Ireland is not facing imminent supply shortages, and the government's analysis foresees no fuel supply shortages for the rest of this year, Mr O'Brien said.