Taoiseach Simon Harris joined Fine Gael General Election candidate Senator John Cummins on his first full day of campaigning ahead of polling day on November 29th. The pair visited Ardkeen Stores, Café Lucia, the library and went canvassing in Grange Cove housing estate.
Speaking to the media during their canvass Taoiseach Simon Harris said
“I’m hearing the importance of Waterford Airport project and I want to be very clear for everybody living in county Waterford, in the city of Waterford and the South East, I want to see that project happen. The Waterford Airport project needs to happen, it needs to happen along the lines of the 2019 agreement.
“I want to be absolutely crystal clear, I'm frustrated by some unhelpful comments that have been made in recent times by others. The Waterford Airport project needs to progress. This is important for Waterford. It needs to progress in the capacity that was agreed in 2019 around the 50-50 contribution. This is a sensible construct because what it basically means is the state only has to put in money when the private element puts in money, too. It's been stalled for too long. I don't want to give anyone a history lesson."
When asked a follow up question regarding the business case, Taoiseach Harris said; "The business case hasn't come to me because that would be a matter for the Minister for Transport, and he didn't bring it to Cabinet. What I'm making very clear to people in Waterford, though, is that if my party leads the next government, the delivery of the Waterford Airport project along the agreed position of 2019 – remember, this came to a Cabinet that I was in in 2019, we've agreed this, itwill happen, and I'm very, very clear in relation to that."
Senator Cummins welcomed the Taoiseach’s comments saying “What is very clear is that Fine Gael is committed to the delivery of the Waterford Airport runway expansion project. The 2019 agreement of 50:50 funding is the basis of the current proposal that has been submitted by Waterford Airport. I have been making the case that the 2019 decision by cabinet should still stand with the only decision required, an alteration of the quantum of matching funding to take account of the increased costs associated with the project.
“Clearly there hasn’t been a desire by the Minister of Transport to progress this project which is unfortunate. It is only one of a handful of government departments without a Fine Gael Minister for the past couple of years and it is my hope that following the election, the new Minister of Transport will be a Fine Gael Minister to enable this critical piece of infrastructure to be delivered”.