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THE IRISH AVIATION Authority has set a limit of 25.2 million seats at Dublin Airport next summer, around a million fewer than this year, in order to ensure it does not exceed the legal capacity.
The decision has been criticised by Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary, who has deemed it “unlawful”.
The IAA is responsible for identifying and determining the capacity at Dublin Airport and setting the consequent parameters for slot allocation.
This includes a passenger cap of 32 million, as set out in the 2007 planning conditions for the development of Terminal 2 at Dublin Airport.
The Dublin Airport authority and a number of airlines have called for the cap to be lifted. Daa has applied to Fingal County Council to increase the cap 40 million passengers as part of a broader infrastructure application.
Last month, the IAA proposed issuing a seat limit of 25.2 million for the Summer 2025 scheduling season. Following a period of consultation, it has now confirmed it is going ahead with these plans.
“To take account of the capacity constraint represented by the planning condition set by An Bord Pleanála, the IAA has set a seat capacity limit of 25.2 million seats for the Summer 2025 scheduling season,” it said in a statement.
The decision will result in a total seat capacity of 39.6 million across the two seasons. The seat cap is greater than the passenger cap as it takes account of expected load factors.
It is the second scheduling season to take account of the 32 million passenger cap. A cap of 14.4 million is in place from 26 October this year until 29 March next year.
“The IAA anticipates that the demand for slots for the Summer 2025 scheduling season will significantly exceed the 25.2m seat cap,” the statement continued.
“In line with the Slot Regulation, air carriers who have operated series of slots (5 weeks or longer) in the Summer 2024 season will be given priority, on initial coordination, in relation to those series for Summer 2025.
“However, the IAA anticipates that not all slot series from Summer 2024 will be capable of being accommodated within the seat cap.”
The IAA also said it anticipates that there will be very little, if any, available capacity for new slot requests, or for ad hoc slot requests, for passenger flights using the capacity of Terminal 1 or Terminal 2 next summer.
“Such an outcome, and its implications for airlines, Dublin Airport and the travelling public are a consequence of the An Bord Pleanála planning condition itself.
“The role of the IAA does not encompass any powers to amend or revoke planning conditions or make any decision to enforce or not enforce conditions. These are all matters to be determined by the planning authorities, such as Fingal County Council.”
In a statement, the Daa welcomed the decision. It said it is reviewing it and awaiting the “detailed supporting document”, which is due to be published later this week.
It said that while the decision to cap seats next summer is bad for Irish jobs, the economy and connectivity, it should “help Dublin Airport comply with planning in 2025″.
“Had the IAA not made this decision as slots regulator, daa would continue to be left holding the problem of trying to comply with planning laws but without a solution in its power,” it said.
“While Dublin Airport wants to grow, cutting the seats coming to Dublin is the only way to meet the planning condition. Therefore today’s decision is welcomed by daa.”
It also said it has asked the High Court to review the IAA’s winter slot decision to avoid Dublin Airport exceeding the 32 million cap this year. The case will be heard on 3 December.
Daa CEO Kenny Jacobs said the decision “has real financial consequences for Ireland”.
“We estimate the damage to the economy to be at least €500 million, increasing to €700 million if we consider lost airfares too,” he said.
“There are also real consequences for airlines, people working at the airport and the travelling public, as well as knock-on impacts on tourism and jobs. This issue is no longer just an airport or a planning issue, it is now an Ireland issue.”
Separately, Ryanair has claimed the decision is “unlawful” and condemned the “inaction” of the Minister for Transport and Minister for Tourism over the passenger cap.
“Today’s ruling by the IAA is unlawful. The Dublin Airport cap is in breach of the EU right to freedom of movement, and is also in breach of the EU/US Open Skies Agreement,” Michael O’Leary said.
“We have no doubt that this absurd 17 year old restriction (which was solely deigned to allay road traffic “concerns” which no longer exist) will be thrown out by the European Courts.”
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Affordable housing for young working adults is the great failure of our time.
@Argus Romsworth: the Gov should relax/ban planning rules for modular houses like they did for the Ukrainians. I know the gov got rode on the price, but you could get a decent 3 bed modular from Steeltech for 40 to 50 grand.
@Finn Barr: yes but you still need to build roads, put water and electrical systems into place for them. You can’t just drop them anywhere and magically have these. These requirements drastically drove up the price of modular housing.
@Niall English: ….and bigotry.
@Niall English: Doesn’t even register on the list imo.
@The facts: Stop talking sense it’s The Journal people don’t like it.
@Niall English: Jog on racist
@The facts: theres lots of young people in rural areas could get a cheap roadside site from a relative willing to pay for electricity connection and any other cost can’t get planning permission thanks to the restriction on one off housing. Not everyone wants to live in a concrete jungle!
@Argus Romsworth: working , that’s where you went wrong if you want a house now.
@Finn Barr: bs well over a ton now , riding like everyone else now
@Argus Romsworth: isn’t it well for you in your million euro mansion
@Pork Hunt: if your on about the price of sites- my cousin got a site for free off her granduncle and she can’t get planning cos she “isn’t from the area”.Lots more in same boat..
@Thesaltyurchin: you don’t think 100k Ukrainians and 35k Africans et al has an impact on housing supply?
@Finn Barr: that’s completely true only for local needs and that needs to be abolished. This is Ireland It belongs to everybody. And y I would solve the housing crisis instantly. The government can pull out the strings for the Ukrainians but it “ chooses “not too pull any strings for the people who pay taxes and live here this needs to be drastically changed
@Finn Barr: 3 bed modular home not a site
@Lance Taylor: I live in a 4 bed detached house in an estate. Hardly a mansion. But might be considered so by todays working youth who can barely afford to live in a shoebox
@Anthony Curran: can’t be a racist if I hate everyone equally the same. but I’m only speaking from experience of what I’ve witnessed first hand, theft, sexually assaulting young school girls, verbally assaulting women working.
@Niall English: That’s called anecdotal evidence. Plus, there’s plenty of Irish people guilty of everything that you listed and worse!
@Pork Hunt: “housing supply”… I have every politician of the last 20 years on the line for you? Nothing in contemporary society is making housing supply easier, you’re just hyper-fixated on the bleeting of the loudest sheep
@Niall English: the two are connected
@The facts: those have very little impact on the price of the modular house, they are site related costs. Modular house were been sold for about 100k , before government went n said it was going to build them for Ukrainians, then the price jumped to 225k, then nearly 500k
@Anthony Curran: that’s not racism.
@Argus Romsworth: Greed, greed, greed. We are truly a great country.
Been I loved in trying to buy house for last year. In midlands. Pure lie. Gone for 6 . Each one went for over 30% of asking. Bidding now on asking 265. Bidding as of today at 345. Ha e to pull out as not enough money. Snakes of auctioneers have a lot to answer for . And yes they are partly responsible but not totally. Promoting bidding wars. I am dealing with them nearly two years. I have had all the bad experiences.
@Seosamh O Muiri: Alot of developers are snapping up everything around us..
@Seosamh O Muiri: an auctioneer isn’t there to get you a deal, it’s to get the best deal for the seller (they’re the ones paying them). It’s tough when you are losing out on bidding wars but if I was selling I’d want to get the best price I can.
@Seosamh O Muiri: just moved before Xmas,the house we bought,paid 47,000 over the asking price,the ones we bid on before that,all 60,000 above the asking price.
@Chutes Idiot: Thank you.
@J B: More people should behave like this. Everyone complains about the housing situation etc , but few are willing to make any personal sacrifice
@Chutes Idiot: My house made more money than I did last year! Whaaa?
Nice to see this country learned nothing from 2006……and then the same people will be like but how is it happening again lads!
@Patrick Newell: Basic Demand and Supply, the last crash wasn’t a Supply issue, 90000 were built in 2006 , but loose lending and people buying 2/3 houses and of course an apartment in Portugal or Bulgaria…….the banks gave out money and people took it ……now people need mortgages and it’s hellish what they need to do…..
@Paul O’Mahoney: And are people financial experts? Any excuse to let the banks off tye hook but as you know, the recession hit because in America banks were betting on price housing increasing non-stop and of course tye rest of the world did the same so don’t blame the ordibary person, where was their mortgage write-down?
@Brian D’Arcy: So you agree with those who bought houses for speculation and profit. You agree with people buying more than one property and more in Europe. You agree that banks acted prudently for all the debt that was taken on.
Why should they get a mortgage write down ? , you appear to be agreeing, that speculation, etc, was OK?
America was way behind in this and only caught up after the .com bubble burst and money needed to made from somewhere ….and housing was next….
That’s hilarious
@Brian D’Arcy: And people don’t need to be financial experts to under basic adding and subtraction. What they might lack financially they certainly made up for in Greed.
House by me has been thrown up twice for subsidence issues. The prospective buyers weren’t allowed to bring their own engineer in to inspect unless they went sale agreed. Is this the new normal now!
@Jamie Hinch: they can go sale agreed,if the engineer report is not favourable they can withdraw the offer.
@Deano74: The house went up for 230k and went sale agreed but they walked when they saw major issues with it so now it’s back down to 180k and they’re contacting original interested buyers now..
@Jamie Hinch: they cannot do that, completely illegal forcing people to buy defective properties. Have you reported them? Garda I
@Lance Taylor: no one is forcing them
@Pork Hunt: yes they are being forced to sale agreed, false pretences
@Lance Taylor: not really,going sale agreed obligates neither side,only when contracts are signed is the vendor legally bound to sell,if you sale agreed and pay your deposit you are at risk of loosing this if you withdraw,I just went through both scenarios before Xmas, absolute nightmare and then some.
@Deano74: Booking deposit is 100% refundable if contracts aren’t signed most would give 10% on signing contracts but if there was a fundamental issue like the above and insufficient planning then the contract can be voided and all deposits returned. Experienced the latter last year.
No good complaining after only 50% turning out to vote at last general election it gives the same FFG government who created this homeless situation another five year to line the pockets and help the super rich vultures to buy up more property for expensive rents for those who can afford it.
@5aeex4zc: 50% of register. The people that emigrated in 2010 still on the register as it suits the county councils for money from the govt
@John Riley:
There has always being a housing waiting list.
Up to 10 years in some cases.
That was when the applacant was made up of a couple and kids.
Nowadays the list is expanded due to high numbers of single applicants, younkies, drunks, and wife beaters, plus single mothers, and the loss of bedsits due to over regulation.
A life of debt and servitude so the wealthy can get wealthier. For what died the sons of Roisin? Was it greed?
@Anthony Curran: What you want it for free?
@Trump24: like a refugee
@Trump24: where did he say for free you gowl? God forbid people demand better for themselves than being conned by another greedy rich wetwipe
Most young people i know have a long term goal of emigration, if we export a huge % of our young people who is gonna service the debt in the future?
@bruce banner: what a bs comment 3 of the 5 people you talk to say they would like to emigrate, but it’s a lot of hassle? Where Australia? More expensive than here with less free houses in cities……
Is it the governments fault? OR are they simply a representation of who the Irish people are? Do we understand or value quality? imo we are trained from 100s of years of subservience to prefer lower standards.
@Thesaltyurchin: Yes it’s the govts fault, and in part the banks fault. 2008 crash followed by no FG housing policy….. Oh, they did let the REITS go to town!!!
@Thesaltyurchin: I think it’s a mixture, we as a country are obsessed with owning land/house, and that’s probably a result of 800 yrs of occupation type nonsense. We are the outliner in Europe when it comes to renting, I will say though our rental market is a shambles and needs a total reform, renting is seen as a waste of money, but most western countries have a huge swath of renters many who will rent for life….with appropriate controls. Buying a house is a sure way of struggling financially until your in your 50s and everyone is much closer to death by then.
I can’t see it changing either but if it doesn’t what’s going on now will continue.
@another one? what’s going on is the semi state sec: There was no capital available to build, banks were essentially taken over by the Government, the bonds were at 11% yield at one stage, our income collapsed and we ran huge deficits . How could anything be done irrespective of what party was in power?
@another one? what’s going on is the semi state sec: there was no money to build a sandcastle, unless you were expecting the IMF to keep pumping money into a property bubble
@Thesaltyurchin:
Yet to hear a seller instruct an Estate rodent to sell their house at a fair price to a deserving family.
@Paul O’Mahoney: renting in other countries comes with lifetime security of tenure which is almost as good as owning.
@Pat Redmond: Yes I know and it needs to be the same here, with fairness to both tenant and landlords
@Paul O’Mahoney: you plan, train workers, make deals with developers, figure out some finance arrangements. Nothing was done by govt until 2018/19 to really address it!!! It was highlighted as an issue in 2011, for nothing to be done for over half a decade is a scandal in itself. Look at the place now!….. in your opinion could nothing have been done to promote housing development in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017?!?!?….. Sub 10k completions until 2017, around 20k in 2019/20….. These peoples jobs are to manage this country and set policy!!!!
@another one? what’s going on is the semi state sec: Ah here train workers when they’re were hundreds of thousands on the dole, and no one knew if things would get better, personal bankruptcy at it’s highest ever, thousands of houses in ” ghost estates ” all taken over by Nama which was a deal , banks on the brink , house prices 50% lower with plenty of half built houses that nobody wanted or could even complete…….and your view was to build more?
Surely you can see the flaw in your analysis it wasn’t until 2015 when non construction jobs began to tick up a bit and probably 2017 when Nama started selling assets to anyone who wanted them.
It simply wasn’t viable.
@another one? what’s going on is the semi state sec:
FG were not short on ideas,
They were short of money.
And nobody would loan us cash as we were bankrupt.
The curse of this generation.
@Paddy Ryan: €1000 month interest at 4.24% is more affordable than renting a starter home. Do they still teach maths in schools or just political debates and snowflakeism
The post war decades were a blip, the rich robbing everyone else was always the norm. Taxing them out of existence is the only defence against the robbing b’s
@Ronan Mc:
So how come living standards for the average worker have increased dramatically from the war years till now?
Ask a 70 year old.
@H Woo: Oh my, the lack of knowledge continues, from a woman in her 90′s that had no money but plenty of food and a house, now it’s a choice of either or. Same old from you, clueless.
@Brian D’Arcy:
?
3.5 times their salaries,. But. Cost of living has soared since celtic tiger. So surely puts people in a more vulnerable state, is this the banks telling porkies again. Car prices have doubled. What happened to the stricter lending rules. People are going to really fall in next recession, esp those who only deal in credit. There won’t be a guarantee like last time.
@Colette Byrne: Wages have also increased the banks are stricter now and the guarantee is in place still and will be forever probably. 158bn in savings, 145bn in pensions, approximately 200bn in other financial assets like ETFs, 20bn of the Government debt is owned by citizens and 17bn in Credit Union savings which I don’t know if included in savings figures…..Totally different now and with essentially full employment and interest rates coming down….people are buying homes with a lot more than those in 2006/7/8…
Economic slavery.
Surely buying a home is no problem on the so called average wage I hear almost everyone is seemingly on?
@Paddy C: The average wage, hmm, slightly telling
Scrap the Help to Buy Scheme, repeal all zoning laws like Tokyo did for single-use and multi-use zoning and repeal the rent control legislation that the government passed in 2015 that is now continuously spreading to more areas of the country like a plague. Oh wait, this is Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil we’re talking about, so of course they are going to continually double down on the same left-wing policies that got us into this mess in the first place! Expect more government intervention and distortion of the market.
@Frank O’Hara:
Sinn Fein want to bring back Landlordism, by owning the land your house is build
Very little future ahead for younger generations unless they come from a wealthy family or earn high salaries they will struggle just to pay basic bills working flat out to do so we should be ashamed that weve all allowedthis ro come about. That’s not a future just an existence.
GREED
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