Brexit: O’Leary Calls PM Delusional

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has accused Theresa May of being “delusional” about Brexit, saying her Government had made two naïve mistakes which threatened to disrupt flights between the UK and Europe after Britain leaves the EU in March 2019.

The first blunder, according to the outspoken Irishman, was to believe that European airlines, hotel owners and airport operators would pressure their governments to compromise on a new aviation deal with the UK.

“I don’t share her (May’s) confidence,” said O’Leary after the latest round of Brexit negotiations in Brussels had made little progress.

“The UK government says Spanish hoteliers and regional airports will put pressure on their governments. But this is big boy politics.”

The truth was that many European travel operators saw the Brexit talks as a selfish financial opportunity, and Lufthansa and Air France were already lobbying hard to advance their own interests, he said. Air France-KLM and Lufthansa have been demanding that the UK accept total EU regulatory control after Brexit, and an end to the cabotage rights which now allow UK carriers such as British Airways and easyJet to fly routes within Europe.

The big European airlines would gain enormously from an end to cabotage because they have hardly any domestic flights within the UK, and Britain represents less than 4 percent of their overall market, the Ryanair chief executive said.

“What the British have underestimated is to the extent that the voices in Europe are lobbying against a deal on flights. The French and Germans aren’t sitting on the sidelines: they’re going to actively shaft (British Airways owner IAG) and easyJet. This is an historic opportunity for them.”

Stick it to the Brits

O’Leary said the second major mistake by May’s team amid the slow progress in Brexit talks was to ignore the special calendar pressures on airlines such as Ryanair, which would allow EU officials to “stick it to the British” by using aviation as a powerful pressure point in the lead-up to a final Brexit deal.

“There’s an increasing awareness in the corridors of power in Paris, Brussels and Frankfurt that aviation is the one to stick it to the British government over, because (the disruption) will come six months before March 2019.

If we don’t know the legal basis for which they (flights) are being operated we’ll be forced to cancel those flights by December 2018 so we can put those flights on sale in Europe.”

“The UK could run out of time. The Europeans are looking for a stick to beat Britain with, and before March 2019 aviation is the one. All the pressure is on the British side. If there is not an agreement by March 2019 Britain gets pushed out of the EU. The legal position is that flights then stop.

“The best outcome for us is Britain to stay in the EU and an open skies agreement. But the deal that Britain is going to be offered is untenable if (May’s Government) is going to stick to its red lines. What is increasingly likely to happen is that there will be no flights. Mrs May and the Brexiteers will be trying to explain that to you in 12 months’ time, why getting a car to Scotland or a ferry to Ireland are the only options on offer.”

“There is going to be a cessation of flights from March 2019 if she doesn’t get her finger out and get a deal done in the next 12 months.”

May “Will Roll Over”

When accused of exaggerating the risk of flights being cancelled the Ryanair boss conceded that he did not really think there would be grounded flights “but only because Britain will roll over.”

O’Leary predicted that May’s government would cave in over its demands on freedom of movement and resisting European regulation, with “panic and fudge” producing a deal which allowed UK carriers to operate in the EU without having any influence over the industry’s rules.

“We’ve been asking Mrs May’s Government, what’s the plan? What’s Plan B, and we haven’t got any Plan B, we haven’t even got Plan A-and-a-half yet.”

The famously pugnacious chief executive was savage in his assessment of May’s overall handling of Brexit.

“She’s delusional, but the entire British establishment is f***cking delusional. Look at those bull**** position papers they published recently. They want to leave the single market but retain access to the single market. Why the f*** are you leaving then? It’s bananas.”

“You’re lions led by f***ing donkeys at the moment, but then you elected them so it’s your own fault. When everyone starts panicking about their summer holidays, then we’ll see how strong and stable Theresa May is.”

 

by Peter Wilson

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