Daa secures stay on notice which could force it to cut night-time flights

Today, Mr Justice Conor Dignam granted the Daa permission to bring a challenge against last month's decision by Fingal County Council to issue an enforcement notice against the Daa, for allegedly breaching the terms of planning permission in respect of the airport's north runway. Picture: Colin Keegan/Collins

The operator of Dublin Airport, Daa, has secured a temporary High Court stay on a decision it claims will force it to significantly reduce the number of night-time flights going to and from the airport.

Today, Mr Justice Conor Dignam granted the Daa permission to bring a challenge against last month's decision by Fingal County Council to issue an enforcement notice against the Daa, for allegedly breaching the terms of planning permission in respect of the airport's north runway.

The Daa claims the enforcement notice is flawed, unreasoned, vague, is of no legal effect, and should be set aside by the court.

The judge also granted the Daa a stay on the notice coming into effect.  However the judge said Fingal County Council can come to court on 48 hours' notice to the Daa and seek to have the stay either removed or varied.

The Daa claimed that if the stay, pending the outcome of the full action, was not granted by the court, the airport operator faced the prospect of possibly having to cancel thousands of flights causing disruption to over 700,000 passengers.

The enforcement notice, which gave the Daa six weeks to reduce the number of flights, was issued in late July arising out of complaints about excessive noise from residents living near the runway.

The council issued the notice on the grounds that the number of flights scheduled by the airport exceeds the terms of a planning condition that no more than an average of 65 flights per day over a given period can operate from the runway between 11pm and 7am.

The Daa is legally obliged to comply with the terms of the enforcement notice and failure to do so would result in it facing criminal sanctions. It disputes the council's decision and denies the planning breach as alleged.

It has launched High Court proceedings where it claims that the notice has been issued in breach of fair procedures.

In its judicial review proceedings, the daa seeks various orders and declarations against the Council, including an order quashing the enforcement notice.

Its core arguments against the legality of the notice include that the council has failed to provide the airport operator with a copy of the planning report, of July 18, 2023, which contains the reasons for why the council opted to issue the enforcement notice.

The Daa's counsel Fintan Valentine told the court that the refusal to provide this report, so the daa can fully understand the basis for the notice, is a clear breach of fair procedures and constitutional justice.

It also seeks an order requiring the council to provide it with a copy of the council's planning report of July 18 and a stay on the enforcement notice coming into effect.

Mr Justice Dignam said he was satisfied that the legal threshold to allow the court grant permission to bring the challenge had been met.

He also said that he was satisfied, with some reservations, to grant the Daa, on an ex-parte basis with only one side represented in court, an interim stay on the enforcement notice coming into effect.

The stay is to remain in place pending the outcome of the full hearing of the dispute, The matter was made returnable to a date in November.

The Irish Aviation Authority is a notice party to the proceedings.

Mr Valentine SC said that the notice has been invalidated on several grounds as well as the council's failure to provide his client with the planning report. He said that the council has failed to enter the reasons for the notice on the official planning register, which he said it is obliged to do.

Counsel said on one reading it may have to cancel approximately 300 flights nighttime flights disrupting up to 45,000 passengers. Another interpretation would require the Daa to cancel some 4000 flights over the coming weeks and months that would disrupt over 700,000 passengers.