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In the Mansion House, Dublin on 18 September, Bertie Ahern told journalists: "I think decentralisation is a good thing for this country,we have to get away from this concept that Dublin is Ireland." In his introduction to the government's National Spatial Strategydocument, he says: "The Greater Dublin Area is facing problemsof congestion, while a number of regions suffer from under-utilisationof their potential and resources." He goes on to say: "In order toachieve more balanced regional development, a greater share of economic activity must take place outside the Greater Dublin Area." What a pity his government does not practice what Bertie preaches. In the Dáil on 15 September 2005, Minister Martin Cullen used the same document to argue that the reckless development of Dublin Airport withits new terminals and new runway, designed to cater for 55 million passengers a year, was wholly consistent with National Spatial Strategy. Minister Cullen has refused even to consider alternatives to this uneconomic and unsustainable expansion by the Dublin Airport Authority,such as development of Cork and Shannon airports or the building of a new airport to serve the Greater Dublin Area. This is in spite of the fact that Finance Minister, Brian Cowen,requires public bodies to subject their spending proposals to a rigorous economic evaluation, including an objective consideration of real alternatives. Just who is in charge here? |
