Ryanair says Ireland is now the ‘last on its list’ for investment

RYANAIR has issued another warning to the Government over its handling of the pandemic, saying Ireland is now ‘last on its list’ for investment.

CEO Eddie Wilson has said that about 8% of the carrier’s traffic is in and out of Ireland.

‘Over the last two months we’ve been making investment decisions... we’ve done a ten-year deal in Stansted, we’ve opened a base in Paris, we’ve opened a base in Zadar, Zagreb,’ he said.

He continued: ‘I was on with the president of Sicily the other day, who’s welcoming us with open arms – and Sicily has a population larger than Ireland.

‘Ireland is the last on our list at the moment for two reasons.’

Speaking on Newstalk, Mr Wilson said that Ryanair’s cheap flights, for as little as €9.99, ‘attract people from all over Europe to come and work here’. ‘And this Government is flushing it down the toilet at the moment,’ the CEO added.

Last May, the company announced plans to cut more than 250 jobs across several bases – including Dublin.

Mr Wilson also criticised claims by Health Minister Stephen Donnelly that airlines are not enforcing public health laws for travellers to Ireland.

Earlier this week, Minister Donnelly said that ‘a number of airlines’ were breaking the law in relation to public health.

He said they were not enforcing the legal requirement to not let people board a plane without the pre-flight PCR test, a passenger locator form or verified quarantine accommodation.

Mr Wilson said the Government was shifting the blame from itself.

He added that a system of quarantine sounds good, but is not workable in a free travel area.