FG criticism of Shannon move has no credibility

I FEEL I must respond to Fine Gael TD Michael Ring’s comments (Morning Ireland, August 14) in relation to Aer Lingus’s decision to cut its Shannon-Heathrow route.

Deputy Ring correctly said Aer Lingus was built by the Irish people and that its management should remember that. He also noted the Taoiseach’s silence on the issue and called on people to use their vote accordingly in the next election.

I would like to point out to Mr Ring that his Fine Gael party supported Aer Lingus’s privatisation which has led to this disastrous decision for the midwest. In fact, it was Fine Gael who criticised the length of time it took to privatise our national airline. Neither Mr Ring nor Fine Gael has any credibility in their criticism of the Government on this matter because if they had been in government for the past 10 years, this situation would have arisen much earlier. Those of us who opposed the privatisation of our national airline have been vindicated, while the former Fianna Fáil/PD government must be condemned for its privatisation policy.