Right of way ruling devalued land near airport, inquiry told

The value of State land at Dublin airport was diminished as a result of a ministerial decision to grant a controversial right of way to a business consortium in the area, a former Aer Rianta executive has stated.

Former Dublin airport manager Brian Byrne also told the Mahon tribunal yesterday that Aer Rianta was aware that the consortium which owned the lands in question, had political connections and it might come under political pressure to make changes that it did not want to make.

The tribunal is currently investigating how 24 acres, known as the Cargobridge lands, were rezoned in 1993. It is also looking at contacts between the consortium and the Department of Transport and the then minister, Brian Cowen, in relation to the granting of a commercial right of way to the property across State lands which allowed it to be developed.

Mr Byrne said Aer Rianta considered that the lands were essential for the development and expansion of the airport. He said Aer Rianta opposed the rezoning of the land and the application for the right of way.

He indicated that if the commercial development of the lands could be blocked that it would increase the prospects of Aer Rianta securing the property.

Mr Byrne said that when the minister agreed the principle of granting the right of way, it was left to Aer Rianta to work out the details with Cargobridge.

"If you have used the long- term car park in Dublin airport, you may understand some of the problems that we have where you have to drive - you could not lay it out in an orderly fashion that you would wish to do and the logical fashion with roads and straight lines, we had to go all over the place with extra things, so it actually disimproved the asset that we had in facilitating the Cargobridge," he said.

Mr Byrne said that Aer Rianta was aware that the brother of a Cargobridge's director, Michael McGuinness - the Fianna Fáil TD John McGuinness - was "heavily involved in politics".

"We were aware all along that Cargobridge had political connections and that knowing how that system might work, that we might get pressure to change something that fundamentally we didn't want to change."

He also said that there were suspicions that corruption may have been involved in some of the rezoning decisions made by councillors in relation to land near Dublin airport in 1993.

He said that there had been a significant change of attitude among some politicians towards developments around that time and that Aer Rianta could not understand the hostility that emerged towards its needs.