Mr. Michael O'Leary:

I will give the Deputy my understanding and then I am sure I will be corrected. Ryanair has had to apply on seasonal basis - each summer and winter - to the Irish Aviation Authority, IAA, which is the regulator for slots. This was even before there was a passenger cap. We would apply, as we have done for this winter. We have the 6.4 million historical seats we operated last year. We also have the 570,000 extra seats. We operated those extra slots last year, so on a historical basis we should be getting those slots but the way the IAA is operating those slots now, it is saying no, it is sorry but because it allowed some additional slots this summer, it has to cut back the slots this winter. Ryanair has been denied those slots for those extra flights during the October mid-term break, Christmas and that kind of stuff. That is how the slot process is operating. Whether there was a passenger cap or not, Ryanair would still have to apply to the IAA.

Ryanair had an issue with the Minister about two weeks ago regarding the European soccer final in Dublin. We applied for approximately 16 extra flights because nobody knew who was in the final until about two weeks beforehand and they came from Italy and Germany. We applied for those extra slots in the normal way. We did not get the slots. To be fair, I wrote to the Minister for Transport and I want to thank him. The DAA would not issue the slots for the 16 extra flights. The Minister intervened and the slots were issued later on that day, so that was solved. However, that is not capable of being solved when looking for 270,000 extra seats this Christmas because we will be above the cap.