Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Members on the Government side should look at the placards they held up in 2006 in O'Connell Street in Limerick.

In the context of Cork, it is critical that we retain access to Heathrow, Amsterdam and Charles de Gaulle airports. That is of considerable importance. I see nothing in this other than glib commentary to the effect that we will continue to develop those routes. This is no guarantee at all. Clearly, the Government's U-turns on this have been contemptuous not only of this House, as evident from the way it has treated it, but also of the thousands of people it promised on O'Connell Street in Limerick all those years ago that it would never sell Aer Lingus. It is selling 100% of the State's stake tonight. I appeal one more time to the Labour 7. There are two choices before them tonight: to sell and not to sell. I ask that the Government not sell.

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