Seanad report: Stressing his party's view that a decision must be made on Aer Lingus's future, Mr Tom Morrissey (PD) said it was essential to ensure that the airline remained strong and competitive, writes Jimmy Walsh.
Mr Tim Dooley (FF) said it was important to recognise that the airline had a strategic role, particularly in tourism and economic and regional development. He was delighted the attempted corporate hijack by the management team had been averted and the Government had rejected the MBO.
Mr Shane Ross (Ind) said the company's future was "all politics" and the person pulling the strings was the Taoiseach. He predicted that unless Mr Morrissey and others put greater pressure on Mr Ahern no decision would be made on Aer Lingus at all until either the next general election or the eruption of another crisis.
"That's what's going to happen. It will be fudged again and eventually we won't have an airline that is working at all."
Mr Joe O'Toole (Ind) was sorry to see the departure of the management personnel who had done a great job. "But the reality is that when they made these young men in a hurry they didn't actually break the mould. There are a lot of other people who can do it as well."
Mr Brendan Ryan (Lab) did not regard as a huge success the way things had progressed in Aer Lingus. The process by which Aer Lingus was making money involved the effective disconnection of our national airline from most of the rest of the country outside Dublin.
Mr Michael Finucane (FG) said the expense of flying to Dublin from regional airports was in direct contradiction to all the marketing policies advocated by Ryanair and Aer Lingus which were touting packages to foreign destinations at very reduced rates. Yet, customers who wanted to fly within Ireland were really ripped off in relation to fares. That should be seriously looked at.
Some hospitals were not fit to bring a dog into, a Fianna Fáil member said.
Accusing the Opposition of indulging in terror tactics over the proposed health service reforms, Ms Geraldine Feeney said she had visited many hospitals during her five years as a member of the medical council.
"I wish to God I could take every senator out of this house and send them around to some of the hospitals I have been in around the country. I can tell you, some of them you wouldn't bring your dog to."