Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Independent)
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1284. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he was notified of the proposal by Aer Lingus to sue the SIPTU trade union and some named employees of that union; if so, the actions he took; and if he sought to persuade the company not to proceed with such action. [14138/14]

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Independent)
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1285. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on the decision by Aer Lingus to sue the SIPTU trade union and some named employees of that union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14139/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1284 and 1285 together.

Shareholders are only required to be notified of a limited number of issues under company law. The legal action taken by Aer Lingus was not such an issue and shareholders were not notified of the matter in advance.

I am on the record as stating that Aer Lingus' decision to sue SIPTU and certain individuals for damages is unhelpful and that I believe Aer Lingus should suspend the legal action. Similarly, I have said that industrial action would not be helpful either while efforts to resolve the matter are still underway.  There should be no strike threats or ballots.

An expert panel has been established to bring specific IR and financial expertise to an analysis of the issues and all parties need to engage with this expert group and focus on finding a solution.