Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I was particularly fascinated by reports in today's media that if the Taoiseach is returned to office after the next election, he intends to promote women to his Cabinet, to constitute a 50-50 proportion of women on it. I was fascinated by this, and somewhat bemused, considering that, when he had the opportunity earlier this year, he did not promote even one woman to the junior ministerial ranks - not one woman. Is he now appealing to the female vote following the confirmation of the partisan nature of some of those who have been designating themselves as Independent Senators in this House following last night's votes? Perhaps that has been the inspiration for the Taoiseach to proceed now with confidence on the basis that whoever he nominates to this House and to the other House will continue to support the Government. However, that is democracy in action and I have no wish to in any way reflect on the decisions that anyone takes on how they vote in this House.

Of much more importance is the overnight news that a takeover attempt of Aer Lingus was unsuccessful, and I ask for the Leader's response. The board has rebuffed this and I am pleased that it has. However, I am particularly concerned that the Government has been quoted as saying it is open to the sale of its 25%-plus stake in Aer Lingus. This country has an extraordinarily successful experience in aircraft maintenance and aviation leasing. Ireland is the leading country in the world for aviation leasing. We also have, extraordinarily, two very successful airlines. We have Ryanair, the pioneering airline which led the break-up of the cartels which operated when I could not afford, as an emigrant in London, to fly from London to Dublin because it cost nearly the equivalent of a month's salary. Ryanair and Michael O'Leary are to be complimented in this regard. They have continued to be successful. Aer Lingus, following a period of very difficult trading, is now a successful company.

This is an extraordinary turnaround for a company that at one stage looked like going under. When the former Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, was Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications in the early 2000s he made statements to the effect that the future of Aer Lingus was in serious doubt. I ask the current Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Donohoe, to clarify the Government's position on a potential hostile takeover of this nature. We are an island nation and we are unlike any other country in Europe or, indeed, the world in the context of this debate about our national airline. The Irish people have a strong empathy with the iconic brand of Aer Lingus and the Government's retention of a 25% share in the airline offers great comfort and reassurance to them. It would not be in this country's strategic interest to allow the airline to be sold off to the private sector because it would leave us exposed to the vagaries of the corporate world not only in terms of potential job losses but also in regard to the service that Aer Lingus provides. Retaining our stake in the airline is of national importance. For these reasons, I propose an amendment to the Order of Business that the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport come before the House today to clarify the Government's position on the future of Aer Lingus and to reassure the Irish people, as we approach Christmas, that we will retain a significant stake in our national airline.