The European Commission is taking legal action against the Government over its failure to introduce new rights for air passengers.
Under EU legislation, member states must compel airlines to compensate passengers in the event of denied boarding, flight cancellation, long delays or lost baggage.
The Government had until February 17th to introduce the laws, provide sanctions against airlines for breaching them and establish an independent enforcement body to handle passenger complaints. It has yet to introduce this legislation.
The commission began what it calls "infringement proceedings" on March 21st by giving the Government formal notice of its failure to implement the legislation and allowing the Irish authorities two months to respond.
A spokesman for the commission said yesterday it had received no response from the Government. "The next step will be to send a second warning letter. If that is not answered the commission can then refer the case to the European Court of Justice," he said.
However, a spokesman for the Department of Transport said it intended to announce the date for the introduction of the legislation next week.
"We will be setting out how to go about making a claim against an airline, if a passenger feels they have some reason to proceed with one," he said.
The new rules aim to reduce the air industry practice of overbooking flights by introducing standard compensation rates for passengers. Compensation for denying boarding to passengers with a valid ticket varies substantially between air carriers.
