Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary says he would ‘happy’ to offer flights to deport people from Britain to Rwanda

London | Michael O’Leary, CEO of Ryanair Holdings, spoke out about Britain’s controversial plan to deport refugees to Rwanda, saying he would “happily” operate the flights if he had the available planes.

“If it was the winter schedule and we had spare planes and if the government was looking for additional deportation flights or other flights, we would be happy to quote for the company,” Mr. O’Leary said in an interview in London.

The British government had not approached Ryanair to operate the flights, O’Leary said. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has vowed to press ahead with a plan to send asylum seekers in Britain to Rwanda, despite opposition from the courts and from both sides of the political spectrum.

Mr O’Leary, known for his controversial views on issues such as obesity and climate change, has dismissed warnings from the United Nations. It says airlines facilitating the removals may be complicit in violating international law.

The Rwanda policy was first announced two years ago. Mr Sunak has stuck with it despite opposition, as his party slumps in the polls and the number of asylum seekers reaching Britain by boat has reached a record.

Bloomberg