Dublin Airport (Passenger Capacity) Bill 2026: Committee and Remaining Stages
Seanad Éireann — 2026-07-08
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Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal East

I thank the Senator. What she is looking for is already in the Bill. I will just explain why. Section 2 includes a really clear definition of the "passenger capacity condition", which is that it "means a condition relating to the number of passengers that may use Dublin Airport for the purpose of travelling by air to or from another airport in any period". As such, the power I have under section 25, which we referred to earlier, is limited to amending the passenger cap condition, which is what is being proposed by the Senator. Both these provisions address recommendations from the Oireachtas joint committee to ensure the scope of the power is limited. The sunset clause is there too. If planning permission is granted under the current application, the order then falls. In future, the Minister could seek a further order to direct the DAA to make another submission. It is not just a big-bang approach on this aspect. It is very much focused on protecting the existing planning application there, because that is current. I believe that what the Senators are seeking is well covered in the Bill.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-07-08/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:55:10+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-08