Ryanair blames Dempsey’s ‘failed strategy’

YOUR article headlined ‘Ryanair chief acting like the boy who owns the ball’ (September 24) wrongly blamed the ailrine for the reduction of flights and traffic at Shannon and Kerry airports.

Ryanair is a publicly quoted company whose duty to its passengers, staff and shareholders is to lower costs and fares wherever possible. We are growing rapidly this year all over Europe where countries like Spain, Italy and Germany are scrapping tourist taxes and lowering airport fees, in some cases by 100%.

Contrast this with Ireland where in the past two years, during the worst recession in history, the Government has imposed a €10 tourist tax and Transport Minister Noel Dempsey has ordered – yes, ordered – the so-called independent aviation regulator to hike Dublin airport’s fees by 40% in 2010 to pay for a €1.2bn white elephant Terminal Two which the airport neither needs nor can afford.