Aviation plans - Politics have no place in decisions

There seems to be a deep-rooted public suspicion that the decisions in relation to the second terminal at Dublin airport and the partial privatisation of Aer Lingus have been motivated by political factors, not commercial considerations.

The Government only has itself to blame for the public cynicism, because it has essentially been selling off the country’s prized assets. Taxpayers paid to build up Eircom, and the public was encouraged to invest in the privatisation of the company as a kind of patriotic duty. But then the many thousands of small investors were compelled to sell their shares at knockdown prices as powerful business interests took over the company.

So many people were burned financially in that fiasco that the options in relation to the sale of Aer Lingus are severely limited, and the public’s cynicism has given rise to serious questions about whether the main consideration is the national interest, or factors relating to Taoiseach Bertie Ahern’s political support in his north Dublin constituency.