Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Like most people in the mid-west, particularly in County Clare and specifically in Shannon, I note the bid which has been submitted to Aer Lingus by International Airlines Group, IAG, for a takeover of the airline. I also note with interest and some concern that Aer Lingus is accepting that bid. However, I welcome the fact that the Cabinet and the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, have decided to engage with IAG to seek clarification. In many ways Aer Lingus is like Eircom in the mid-1990s, when not just the business but the network throughout the country were sold. Had that been retained in public ownership, every home in this country would have broadband. Similarly, Aer Lingus holds very important slots, not just for the mid-west region and Shannon but for this country in terms of connectivity. It is not just connectivity to Heathrow but to the many parts of the world that are served from Heathrow.

While Aer Lingus is a fantastic brand and the management and staff have done wonders to turn the airline around and make it profitable, I humbly suggest that at €1.4 billion the airline is probably slightly over-priced. One must wonder if it is the Heathrow slots that make it so attractive for an organisation such as IAG to make such a lucrative bid. We must move with extreme caution before accepting these gifts from the east, as it were. We must think of the future business of this country and our connectivity with the rest of the world. The world is a global village and, most importantly from our perspective, we can get to the global village more quickly than others. Those Heathrow slots are part of our make up. They are part of the tourism and business product in this country and I would wish to know a great deal more before I would be happy with the sale of Aer Lingus.