EC to probe Aer Rianta break-up

THE European Commission will examine whether the break-up of Aer Rianta breaches EU rules when it receives details from the Government.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said the deal to pass on the debts of Cork and Shannon airports to Dublin could be contrary to rules on state aid. He raised the issue yesterday with EU Transport Commissioner Loyola de Palacio when he met her in Brussels.

However, the commissioner’s spokesman, Giles Gantelet, said there are no EU rules about airports as they have always been considered to be infrastructural, like roadways.