On Thursday 28 May 2015, the Dáil voted to sell the State’s 25.1% stake in Aer Lingus to International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG) the parent company of British Airways.
The coalition government secured the majority backing it needed in Parliament for sale of the stake, with lawmakers voting in favour after two days of heated debate. The vote was carried with 74 TDs in favour and 51 against, with Labour’s Michael McNamara the only Government TD to oppose the motion.
In a statement Mr McNamara said: “I could not support the vote to sell the Government’s 25.1% share in Aer Lingus. This is not a decision I came to lightly. Mr McNamara added: “We are an island nation and connectivity to the world market is essential for both industry and tourism. I am not prepared to gamble with what I believe is key to the economic development of this State, all of this State”.
Aer Lingus chairman Colm Barrington welcomed the vote, saying the airline would benefit from accelerated growth and access to a global network when it becomes part of the much larger IAG, which also operates Spain’s Iberia airline. IAG chief Willie Walsh has been wooing the Irish government for months in his attempt to buy out Aer Lingus. If the deal goes ahead, the government would receive some 350 million euros.
But Walsh’s bid must still clear many hurdles, and needs backing from low–cost carrier Ryanair, the largest shareholder of Aer Lingus, to complete the deal.
Ryanair, which owns about 30 percent of Aer Lingus, said it would consider “any offer on its merits, if and when an offer is made.”
Walsh said Wednesday he has not talked to Ryanair in recent weeks, and suggested that he was not expecting Ryanair to frustrate the bid.
The proposed takeover also faces months of regulatory scrutiny from competition authorities in Ireland, Britain and the European Union.
Opposition parties in Ireland have criticised the Dáil’s approval to sell its stake in the airline to IAG. Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams has challenged the Taoiseach’s assertion that the Government sell off of Aer Lingus is a good deal.
Mr Adams said: “The Taoiseach says this because he believes in dismantling state assets. He believes in privatisation across the board. He has no concern in the interests of the workers, passengers, or citizens that made Aer Lingus profitable.”