Colm Barrington, chairman of Aer Lingus, has stated that the Irish government is unlikely to sell its stake in Aer Lingus until Ryanair is no longer a shareholder.
In an interview with the Irish Independent, Barrington said: "[The Government have] said they will sell the shareholding, but that they're not going to sell it until they see a secure future for Aer Lingus, so they can preserve the two-airline policy in Ireland."
Adding: "If Aer Lingus becomes more vulnerable to Ryanair because they (the Government) sold those shares, then they'd say they're not going to sell them – so that's what we expect."
Ryanair near 30% stake in Aer Lingus is deterring potential buyers, says Barrington: "Nobody wants to partner with Ryanair because they're not partners. They do their own thing. So no-one wants to come into a company where Ryanair is a significant shareholder."