Economics 31/05/2010: How much more evidence do we need?

In the spirit of my earlier posts on the matter - here is today's press release from Ryanair. Let me add, uncontroversially, that I fully subscribe to Ryanair view that our travel tax (defacto assigned in the Irish Times op ed to Gurdgiev-Ryanair [campaign against the] tax, but since then spreading to include on the opposition side all main airlines based in Dublin) has been hurting tourism in Ireland, while imposing an arbitrary, unnecessary and unjustifiable burden on ordinary families here.

RYANAIR BELIEVES IRISH GOVT HAS CAUSED OUR TOURISM COLLAPSE AS GROWTH RETURNS TO OTHER EU COUNTRIES

INDEPENDENT REPORT SHOWS THAT ONLY COUNTRIES WITH TOURIST TAXES CONTINUE TO DECLINE

Ryanair, Ireland’s largest airline, today (31^st May) published irrefutable evidence that the Irish Govt is responsible for the collapse in Irish tourism as new (independent) statistics show traffic growth has returned to those EU countries that do not impose tourist taxes. These statistics disprove Minister Dempsey’s claims that the fall in traffic and tourism is ‘an international phenomenon’ and proves that Irish tourism is being devastated by the Govt’s €10 tourist tax.

The RDC Aviation report (attached) highlights that Irish seat capacity (which drives passenger numbers) collapsed by over 140,000 in April and by over 700,000 so far in 2010. Seat capacity continues to decline in Ireland, the UK and France - the only European countries which continue to impose tourist taxes. By contrast, growth has returned to countries which have scrapped tourist taxes (Belgium and Holland) or reduced airport charges, in some cases to zero, (Spain) to stimulate tourism growth.

Ryanair warned that this downward trend at Irish airports will worsen throughout 2010 as the DAA makes Ireland even more uncompetitive with a 40% increase in the airport charges to pay for its €1.2bn T2 white elephant.

RDC Aviation: Irish Airport Capacity Jan-Apr

Year	Seats
2009	5,021,727
2010	4,321,433
Decline	– 700,294

Ryanair’s Stephen McNamara said:

“The RDC Aviation report shows that those countries, like Ireland, which impose tourist taxes continue to decline and disproves the Dept of Transport’s claims that the continuing record collapse in traffic at Dublin Airport is ‘an international phenomenon’. The Irish Govt’s €10 tourist tax and high charges at the DAA Monopoly have made Dublin an uncompetitive, expensive destination. Growth has returned throughout Europe except in Ireland, the UK and France which are the only major European countries to tax tourists instead of welcoming them.

“Ireland’s traffic and tourism decline will increase when charges at the DAA Monopoly rocket by over 40% in October as the Dept of Transport rewards the DAA for its traffic decline and the €1.2bn white elephant, T2. Unfortunately 2010 will be even worse than 2009 in terms of lost visitors, jobs and tourism revenues in Ireland. It is time to axe this stupid €10 tourist tax and slash the DAA’s high fees”.

Economics 20/05/2010: No comment needed

This is in just now from Ryanair:

Starts

IRELAND LOSES RYANAIR HANGAR AND UP TO 200 JOBS TO GERMANY AND FRANKFURT HAHN AIRPORT

(Thursday, 20th May 2010) ...At a press conference in Mainz today, hosted by Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary and Minister for Economics and Transport, Hendrik Hering, Ryanair announced that it would invest €25m in building a new two bay aircraft maintenance hangar including two aircraft simulators and a 16 room cabin crew training centre, in a move which will create up to 200 new Ryanair jobs at Frankfurt Hahn Airport.

...This new facility and jobs will replace those previously offered to the Irish Government earlier this year in the empty Hangar 6 at Dublin Airport. Ryanair regrets that even today, many months later, Hangar 6 remains unused for base maintenance, while up to 900 SRT Engineers remain unemployed, drawing the dole. Many of these people could have found skilled, well paid work, with Ryanair, had the Irish Government accepted the airline’s offer to buy or lease Hangar 6 and divert a significant proportion of Ryanair’s base maintenance to Dublin Airport.

Speaking today in Germany, Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary said:

“While we are pleased to announce this new investment in Germany and Frankfurt Hahn Airport, I regret that the Irish Government stood idly by and did nothing to win these new jobs for Ireland. The Irish Government talks a lot about competitiveness, but is short on action.

“At a time when traffic and tourism is collapsing in Ireland, the Irish Government prefers to impose tourist taxes, and order big increases in Dublin Airport’s fees, rather than work with the world’s largest airline to lower access costs, win investment in maintenance or create hundreds of well paid engineering jobs at Dublin Airport.

“Sadly in Ireland, we are stuck with a Government which likes talking about the “smart economy” but prefers implementing “dumb policy”. The sooner they reverse these tourist taxes and slash high costs at the Government owned DAA airports, then the sooner Irish airports and tourism can return to low cost access and traffic growth”.

Ends. Thursday, 20th May 2010