Derry to Dublin air route expected to re-open ‘next year', says Irish minister
Foyle MP Colum Eastwood tonight has welcomed progress on the restoration of the route following a meeting between Irish Minister for Transport Darragh O'Brien and City of Derry Airport today.
Mr O'Brien has confirmed that he expects services to commence later in 2026.
Mr Eastwood said: 'This is great news for Derry and it's another important part of enhancing connectivity between every part of the island to drive investment, create jobs and deliver more opportunities for people in the North West.
'The Irish Government set out a clear and positive commitment to establish a new public service obligation route between Derry and Dublin in the Programme for Government this year and I am delighted that Minister Darragh O'Brien and others have wasted no time in rolling up their sleeves and getting to work.
'This is a great example of how prioritising investment across our shared island can deliver for people and communities in every part of Ireland. I'm looking forward to continuing to work with the Minister and the whole Irish Government to deliver on shared priorities.'
Earlier, Mr O'Brien met with the Chief Executive of Derry City and Strabane District Council John Kelpie and management of City of Derry Airport.
They discussed the progress to date on the service between Dublin and Derry City airports, and the preparatory work under way.
Mr O'Brien said: 'In the context of building our shared Island, the Programme for Government includes a very clear commitment to engage with relevant stakeholders to establish air connectivity between Dublin and Derry City airports.
"We had a very constructive meeting today on progressing this commitment, and once the preparatory work is completed, I expect services will commence later in 2026 following a procurement process.'
Irish Department of Transport officials are also engaging closely with colleagues in the Shared Island Unit, Stormont's Department for the Economy, the UK Department for Transport, and the European Commission in relation to any State aid implications and obligations.
A Market Sounding Exercise is planned by the Department this year, to better inform the level and frequency of services that may be required on this Public Service Obligation (PSO) air route.
Attendees at today's meeting were Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport Charlie McConalogue; Donegal County Council Chief Executive John McLaughlin; Chief Executive of Derry City and Strabane District Council John Kelpie; Chairman of City of Derry Airport Albert Harrison; Deputy Chairman of City of Derry Airport Paul Byrne; Director of City of Derry Airport Seamus Neely; Managing Director of City of Derry Airport Steve Frazer; and Department of Transport officials.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
North Wales Chronicle
12 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Nigel Farage as British PM would put Irish unity ‘centre stage'
Mr Varadkar, who stood down as taoiseach in April last year, said it is possible Mr Farage will be prime minister in four years or nine years time. He described British politics as 'very volatile'. Reform made big gains in local elections in England and Wales in May. Mr Varadkar told BBC Northern Ireland's The View programme, which will be aired on Thursday night, that he hoped Mr Farage is not the next British prime minister. The former Fine Gael leader said if the Reform leader became prime minister, it would 'change the pictures in terms of attitudes towards independence in Scotland'. 'I think it would change the views of some people in the middle ground in Northern Ireland (towards Irish unity),' he said. 'It isn't just because a right-wing nationalist government in London would want to bring the UK and Northern Ireland away from Europe. It is other things as well.' He also claimed that councils run by Reform in England were preventing people from flying Pride or progress flags. Mr Varadkar added: 'I don't think most people in Northern Ireland would like that. 'If that's the kind of government they had in London versus a government in Dublin that was very different, it might make them more likely to vote yes to unification,' he added. 'I do want to be very clear about this, it's not something I hope happens. 'I hope it doesn't happen.' Mr Varadkar said he believes planning for a united Ireland should be happening, but that a date should not be fixed as the numbers to win are not in place. He added: 'I don't think a united Ireland is inevitable, I think it's something that we have to work towards. 'But I think there are a lot of factors that would suggest that we're on that trajectory. 'Demographic factors, polling, even the most recent numbers showing that a very clear majority of younger people in Northern Ireland want there to be a new united Ireland.' 'I think that will carry true, and that's why I think it's something that we should plan for.' He said Irish unity will not happen 'by osmosis or by accident'. 'I think (it) has to be worked towards. I think those of us who believe in it have a duty to make the case for it,' he added. 'Look at the trajectory, and that is clear. We see it in elections. We see it in opinion polls. We see it in demographics.'
South Wales Guardian
12 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
Irish leaders call for ‘immediate de-escalation' between Iran and Israel
Irish premier Micheal Martin said Iran should make clear it will not pursue further enrichment of uranium. Irish deputy premier Simon Harris, who is also the minister for foreign affairs, said work was ongoing at EU level to engage with citizens in Israel and Iran who may wish to leave. Iran and Israel have been striking each other's territory for a week, deepening the crisis in the Middle East. Israel said it launched an attack to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. Iran has insisted its nuclear programme is peaceful, but it is the only non-nuclear-armed state to enrich uranium up to 60%, far in excess of the levels required for power stations and a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%. After a missile attack on a hospital in southern Israel, defence minister Israel Katz said Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei 'absolutely should not continue to exist'. US President Donald Trump has also reportedly been considering involving the US by targeting a uranium enrichment facility in Iran. Asked what role Ireland can play in the crisis, Mr Martin said Ireland and the EU can urge 'restraint and de-escalation'. 'The world needs stability and it needs peace – and dialogue is the way to resolve the nuclear issue in terms of Iran,' the Taoiseach told RTE Radio. 'Iran has been a malign actor in the Middle East for quite a long time in terms of supporting Hezbollah, Hamas the Houthis – it's a theocratic autocratic state. 'But there was dialogue on the way between Iran and the United States on that issue, I think that should restart. 'I think Iran should make it very clear that it will not pursue further enrichment of uranium, or indeed progress to developing nuclear bomb capacity.' Meanwhile, Mr Harris said there was a 'massive effort' at EU level to support citizens and diplomats in Iran and Israel. He said the EU was engaging with Germany, France and the UK to persuade the Iranians back into talks. 'It is almost impossible to overstate the potential danger of this, if there ends up being involvement of other countries, or indeed spill-over into other countries,' he said on Thursday. 'Ireland, whilst far away in one way, does obviously have a number of citizens in both countries, have a significant number of troops in Lebanon, is very concerned about the situation in Palestine, so there's quite a lot of moving parts in this.' He told RTE Radio: 'Nobody wants to see Iran with nuclear capabilities. 'Everybody is aware of the dangers that Iran poses, but at the same time, the way you resolve these issues is through the talks that were scheduled to take place and which were obviously ultimately postponed as a result of Israeli (incursion).' He said Irish embassies had contacted citizens in Iran and Israel on Wednesday who would like to leave when the opportunity arises. There are around 29 Irish citizens and 12 dependants in Iran, and 200 Irish citizens in Israel. 'There's the massive effort at a European level to make sure we try to provide support to our own citizens and our own diplomats in what is becoming a really dangerous environment and a really difficult environment in which to operate from and function from as well,' he told RTE Radio. He said that as the airspace is closed in Iran, evacuation would mean going over the land border, and for those in Israel it means travelling to Jordan or Egypt. 'There are a number of options available to us. We're working very closely with a number of member states, and we're also having to now, in a very serious way, also look at how we best support our diplomats, because the situation is deteriorating quite significantly in terms of being able to effectively operate in the country, and also obviously safety and security issues,' he said.
Belfast Telegraph
13 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Derry to Dublin air route expected to re-open ‘next year', says Irish minister
Foyle MP Colum Eastwood tonight has welcomed progress on the restoration of the route following a meeting between Irish Minister for Transport Darragh O'Brien and City of Derry Airport today. Mr O'Brien has confirmed that he expects services to commence later in 2026. Mr Eastwood said: 'This is great news for Derry and it's another important part of enhancing connectivity between every part of the island to drive investment, create jobs and deliver more opportunities for people in the North West. 'The Irish Government set out a clear and positive commitment to establish a new public service obligation route between Derry and Dublin in the Programme for Government this year and I am delighted that Minister Darragh O'Brien and others have wasted no time in rolling up their sleeves and getting to work. 'This is a great example of how prioritising investment across our shared island can deliver for people and communities in every part of Ireland. I'm looking forward to continuing to work with the Minister and the whole Irish Government to deliver on shared priorities.' Earlier, Mr O'Brien met with the Chief Executive of Derry City and Strabane District Council John Kelpie and management of City of Derry Airport. They discussed the progress to date on the service between Dublin and Derry City airports, and the preparatory work under way. Mr O'Brien said: 'In the context of building our shared Island, the Programme for Government includes a very clear commitment to engage with relevant stakeholders to establish air connectivity between Dublin and Derry City airports. "We had a very constructive meeting today on progressing this commitment, and once the preparatory work is completed, I expect services will commence later in 2026 following a procurement process.' Irish Department of Transport officials are also engaging closely with colleagues in the Shared Island Unit, Stormont's Department for the Economy, the UK Department for Transport, and the European Commission in relation to any State aid implications and obligations. A Market Sounding Exercise is planned by the Department this year, to better inform the level and frequency of services that may be required on this Public Service Obligation (PSO) air route. Attendees at today's meeting were Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport Charlie McConalogue; Donegal County Council Chief Executive John McLaughlin; Chief Executive of Derry City and Strabane District Council John Kelpie; Chairman of City of Derry Airport Albert Harrison; Deputy Chairman of City of Derry Airport Paul Byrne; Director of City of Derry Airport Seamus Neely; Managing Director of City of Derry Airport Steve Frazer; and Department of Transport officials.
