A spokeswoman for Mr Donohoe said it was a private dinner and that no business matters were discussed, and neither were matters of policy or regulation. It was not included in his ministerial diary – which his spokeswoman said is “used predominantly to log official events”. No records were kept as it was a private dinner, and no actions were taken arising from it, she said.
When first contacted about whether Mr Donohoe had met Mr O’Leary by The Irish Times earlier this month, the Minister’s team did not disclose the dinner until after they were approached again with more information about its timing. Mr Donohoe’s spokeswoman said that the information was not supplied after this initial approach as it was a “dinner of a private nature”. The dinner took place in Delahunt, a fashionable restaurant in Dublin 2.
It was attended by another unnamed person. [ Delahunt review: This Dublin restaurant has raised its game spectacularly Opens in new window ] “One other person was present at the dinner. We will not comment on who this is, respecting the privacy of the person in question,” Mr Donohoe’s spokeswoman said.
Ryanair confirmed that Mr O’Leary had met Mr Donohoe for dinner in early February 2022. “This was a social dinner in a Dublin restaurant in the company of others. No Ryanair business or regulation as Min Donoghue (sic) has no responsibility for transport or tourism.
” No lobbying return was made by Ryanair regarding the dinner. The airline said: �.