Government to decide this evening on selling 25% Aer Lingus stake
The Taoiseach has said the Government will make a decision in the next few hours on the sale of the State's 25% shareholding in Aer Lingus.
The Cabinet discussed a report from an expert panel this morning, but ran out of time and are reconvening this evening to continue the discussion.
"I expect the Government will conclude its deliberations this evening and any decision made will be in the best interests of the country," Mr Kenny said.
He promised a full Dáil debate tomorrow on the decision.
Sources say Labour Ministers are now in favour of accepting the revised €1.4bn offer from IAG, believing that the concerns of several of the party's backbenchers have now been addressed.
However, Labour TD for Co Clare Michael McNamara said he was concerned about what the deal will mean for Shannon airport.
He said backbenchers would need time to go through the fine print of any agreement.
"I'm also slightly concerned that the Dáil will be expected to vote on this in a vacuum tomorrow. Backbenchers should be able to inform themselves about what exactly they'll be voting on."
IAG has reportedly made a fresh pledge to the Government to retain Aer-Lingus' prized Heathrow slots for Irish routes for seven years.
Fianna Fáil opposes the sale. Micheál Martin said: "We believe there are fundamental issues relating to connectivity (and to) reduced competition if it goes ahead."
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said his party was concerned about job losses if the State agreed to the sale.
He said: "The IAG proposals do nothing to prevent the loss of an estimated 1,200 jobs."
