Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary has claimed that Ireland is losing out on the 'enormous growth' being delivered across Europe by his airline, because of the €3 travel tax and high airport costs.
Transport Minister Leo Varadkar said yesterday that the Government had decided to keep the €3 tax in place for the moment, as there had been no solid commitments from airlines on new routes.
At a press conference in Dublin today, Mr O'Leary said his airline carried eight million passengers last month, the highest figure by any airline in Europe.
He said the new government had promised to change and reform the previous government's policy, but had not done so.
He said DAA costs had increased by 40%, while passengers numbers declined, adding that the continuing decline could not be blamed on the recession as passenger numbers were returning to normal across Europe.
The Ryanair chief also said there was no evidence of any growth in Irish tourism, and that any claims that visitor numbers were up in 2011 were wrong. He cited CSO figures showing that total passenger numbers for the first quarter of 2011 were down.
Ryanair dismissed claims by Minister Varadkar that new routes outlined in exchange for abolishing the travel tax involved Mediterranean hotspots, saying this accounted for just 25% of new routes.
He said it was 'ludicrous' to dismiss outward bound flights, saying they were a fundamental part of air travel, with aircraft filled on outbound and inbound journeys.
Mr O'Leary said Ryanair had presented a detailed strategy to the Minister for Transport for building passenger numbers. He said the travel tax this year would bring in only around €30m, and needed to be scrapped.
