Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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777. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the steps his Department is taking to ensure the future viability of Aer Lingus; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25953/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The State's shareholding in Aer Lingus does not allow it to interfere in any way in the commercial operations of the company.  Aer Lingus reported an operating profit of €61.1 m in 2013 which was the company's fourth consecutive year of profitability.  The Government continues to manage its shareholding actively, with the aim of maximising the value of the shareholding, securing dividends and encouraging new routes and additional capacity where commercially viable.  

As Minister I have responsibility to ensure that the right conditions exist to facilitate the development and growth of the aviation industry  as a whole. With that in mind I am in the process of developing a new civil aviation policy for Ireland. It will be the first policy framework for aviation in Ireland in over 20 years. The new policy will facilitate the expansion of the industry, help make it more competitive, tackle barriers to growth and facilitate the development of new air transport links. It will provide a basis for us to plan for the future of this vital industry and Aer Lingus has a big part to play in that.